To See A Falling Star
by Lady FoxFire
Summary: When Vernon's abuse goes to far, will Harry be able too live with the effects? Warning: implied sexual contact and violence.
1. To See A Falling Star

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter nor am I making any money off of this. Just think of this as practice for when I write my novel.

Bad Author Notes: Just taking a short break from The Broken Child. This fanfic is part of my ATP series (At The Park - stories I work on at the park while my son runs around like a mad man.) So I don't know when the next chapter will be done. From the feel of it this story could be The Broken Child replacement when that story has run it's course many months from now.

To See A Falling Star

By Lady FoxFire

May 18, 2002

The door only opened a few inches before the security chain stopped it. A woman pressed her face against the narrow opening, the door hiding her features from view. She studied the tall pale man on her porch and swallowed nervously before she found her voice. "Yes? Can I help you?" her voice trembled.

"Is this the Dursley's residence?" the mysterious man asked in a deep, rich voice.

"Yes." The woman replied timidly. "But my husband is away right now, perhaps if you try at his office in the morning…" she said as she tried to shut the door.

The man thrust his boot in between the door and it's jam, leaning his weight against the door. "I'm not here to see your husband, Mrs. Dursley. I'm here about the Potter child."

"Harry?" The woman squeaked with panic in her eyes. "What... what do you want with him?" Her voice trembled with fear.

"I'm Professor Snape, Potter's potions teacher at Hogwarts. When he didn't arrive at the school, I was sent to retrieve the child," he explained. 

"I… I… he… He says he doesn't want to go back there." The woman stuttered. "He doesn't want to see anyone either."

Snape's eyes narrowed at Petunia's words. "I don't care what you claim Potter said. I will see that boy immediately or you will find out what a fully trained wizard is capable of. Is that understood?"

"Yes." Her voice broke under Snape's icy stare. "I… I… you need to move your foot. So I can take the chain off."

Snape snorted in disgust as he removed his foot. The woman immediately shut the door in his face; only the sounds of her fumbling with the chain stayed his hand from cursing her. Finally the door swung open, and Petunia hid her thin frame behind the door as she motioned the potions Master inside. Once in she quickly shut the door, throwing the deadbolt and replacing the security chain.

"He's upstairs. Last door down the hall," she said her back towards him, her long hair hiding her face.

Snape quickly stormed up the stairs, snarling the whole time about how Dumbledore should have sent someone else to deal with his boy and his Muggle family, instead if wasting his valuable time. When Snape reached the last door in the hall, he flung the door open irritably.

He stepped into the doorway of the dark room; his arms crossed over his chest and a look on his face that would have set grown men to blubbering like babies. He eyed the clean but sparsely furnished room with contempt.

Finally he noticed Potter sitting at his window, his back toward the door watching the moon slowly rise into the sky. His white owl Hedwig sat on the windowsill next to him as the boy stroked her soft feathers. Hedwig ruffled her feathers when she saw Snape in the doorway.

"Go away," Harry said in a dejected voice as he watched Snape's reflection in the windowpane.

"Hardly. I've been sent to retrieve you, Potter," Snape said snidely. "I'm surprised at you. I didn't even think you could mess up such a simple thing as catching the Hogwarts Express."

Potter's shoulders slumped forward at the sound of Snape's voice. "Just go away, professor. I'm not returning to Hogwarts."

Snape slammed the door behind him. "That's what you think, Potter." Snape dropped into a deep growl. "Dumbledore order me to bring you to Hogwarts and that's what I'm going to do. Now get your trunk!"

"No," Harry replied softly as he continued to watch Snape's reflection, refusing to turn around and face the man. "There's no point in me ever returning Hogwarts. My uncle won."

"I don't care about what you want. Now go get your trunk." Snape demanded in a voice that would never be argued with. 

"No. There is no point in me returning to Hogwarts," Harry said in a firm tone. "Get out of my room and leave me alone, professor." 

"I will not!" Snape snapped at him as he glared at the back of Harry's head; growling in frustration as Harry made no move to follow his orders or even to turn and face him. "Potter, face me when I'm taking to you."

Snape marched over to Harry, grabbed the boy by his shirt and whirled him around, preparing to yell in his face. "Harry!" His voice trembled sickly as he looked into the boy's eyes.

Where once his eyes were a brilliant green, they were now dull and cloudy, like a frosted windowpane on a wintry day. Harry snarled as he stared up unseeingly at Snape, "As you can see, professor, I can't." 


	2. What Sighted Eyes Refused To See

Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter series nor do I make any money off of this fanfic and right now I wished I did.

Bad Author Notes: Finally I'm updating. Petunia was a real bitch to work with in this chapter.

This chapter is dedicated to Quoth the Raven.

What Sighted Eyes Refused To See

By Lady FoxFire

July 14, 2002

Snape's hand fell from Harry as if he was burnt. "Just get out professor." Harry said in a tired voice as he turned away from the man, feeling for his chair.

In numb silence, Snape watched Harry grope for his chair that was just a few inches from his out stretched fingers. He watched as the boy lowered himself into his chair and started to stoke the feathers of his owl once again.

"Excuse me." A timid voice said from the doorway. "Sir?"

"Go away Snape." Harry command. "Just go away."

The Potion Master stared at the boy for a few moments more before silently walking away. "I want an explanation." He growled as Harry's aunt pulled the bedroom door shut behind him.

"In the kitchen." Petunia said as she brushed past Snape and down the stairs.

"What did you Muggles do to him?" Snape said in a low, dangerous, growl as soon as he stepped into the kitchen.

Petunia head snapped up at his comment, her eyes narrowed. "What happened in this house is just as much your kinds fault as it is mine." She said in a bitter voice.

Snape's eyes widen not at her words or tone of voice but at the sight of her face. He face was covered with fading bruise, her lip still slightly swollen from someone hitting her. Unconsciously the Potion Master reached out to touch her injured face.

She flinched as his fingers brushed against her skin. Her face was a patchwork of fading greenish bruises. Her eyes were full of pain and hopelessness.

"Tell me everything." Snape command in a gentle but firm tone as his hand fell away from her face. "I need to what happened in this house. I need to know everything if I am to help." He explained as he sat down at the kitchen table.

Petunia busied herself in the kitchen, preparing a pot of tea. "I was jealous of Lily when she received her letter. She stopped being my sister at that moment and became something more. Our parents praised everything that she did. They never notice me after that day." She said setting kittal on the fire. "Or that's the way I felt at the time."

  
"When I meet Vernon everything in my life changed." She said in a wistful voice, her eyes glazed over as she remembered a happier time. "Everyday he would call me and we would chat for hours on end. He would send me candy and flowers to my job. I would get long love letters from him weekly. I felt like Cinderella as her prince Charming arrived on his white stallion to rescue her from her evil family." Petunia snapped out of her trance with a snort. "And I've become the evil stepmother."

Snape sat in silence as he watched the woman prepare the tea. He watched her move stiffly and cautiously as she sat the tea set and biscuits on the table next to him.

Pouring a cup of tea for Snape and herself, she, Petunia, continued with her story. "My parents approved of Vernon almost immediately. He was quite a charming gentleman. He complemented everything about my mother, and discussed world affairs with my father. He had everyone under his spell, everyone but Lily, some how she knew. She knew that he was evil, that he was a monster. I thought she was jealous of me at the time. Here I had found a handsome, intelligent businessman and she was still a dateless freak. But some how she knew the truth about him."

"The truth?" Snape asked as he sipped his tea waiting patiently for her to continue.

Petunia swallowed nervously, her hair falling around her face to hide her shame. "Vernon.. he… he like to be in control of everything, of everyone. And when he wasn't he would get angry."

"And he would hit you." Snape said, saying what she couldn't.

Petunia nodded her head in silence. "It didn't start out that way. At first he didn't approve of this friend or that friend; soon the only friends I had were his friends. I didn't know how to say no to him. He was my life, my reason for being."

"When our parents died in the accident, he became more controlling. He wanted to know where I was at all time, who I talked to. He even had me quit working. He wanted me to stay home and take care of the house and our future children." Petunia explained as she swept the hair from her face. "By the time I was pregnant with Dudley I was completely cut off from my old life, I couldn't even contact my own sister." 

"The first time he hit me was when I was late returning from a doctor appointment. He had a bad day at the office, the house wasn't as clean as he wanted and dinner was late. And… And.. Then he said he was sorry but I shouldn't have gotten him angry with me. He would only hit me when I got him angry and then he was always so sorry, so loving."

"After Dudley was born he promised me, never again. He would never hurt me again. But it was all lies."

Petunia raise her teacup to her lips, her trembling hands causes the tea to splash around. "As a baby, Dudley cried a lot. And Vernon would get so upset. There was time I feared that he would do something to our baby. He would get jealous of Dudley if I paid more attention to Dudley than to him when he returned home."

"I finally had enough the first time he struck Dudley. It took a month until I was able to contact Lily. She agreed almost at once to help us escape Vernon. She was… she was to come the day after Halloween when Vernon was at work."

"And Potter?" Snape asked softly.

"When I found him on the step, I realized that Lily was gone. That my sister was dead. Vernon wanted to drown Harry. He didn't want to spend the time or money on raising Harry. I was finally able to convencine him that it would be dangerous to kill or abandon the child. That someone might check on him and would be upset to find him missing. I had so hoped that someone would check on him but no did."

"I had thought of taking the children and running away. But I had no jobs skills, no friends or family to flee to. And I had two small children to care for. You headmaster had wrote in the letter he left with Harry about the protection he had placed on the house to protect Harry from those that killed Lily. I couldn't leave the house. He was protected here. Better to face an evil you know than one you didn't."

"You could have contacted us. Dumbledore supplied you with parchment in case something happened and you needed us." Snape stated as he began to realize how much this woman had sacrifice to protect her sister's only child. "We would have taken you and the children from this place. We would have protected you."

Petunia wiped the tears from her face. "Vernon hid it from me. I think he kept in contact with your Headmaster. I think he was demanding money from him for him to take care of Harry. For years I've searched for a way to contact someone, anyone who would help us but I never could."

"And Harry? Why did your husband hurt him?" Snape asked.

"Vernon hated Harry, not because of what he was but because he took me away from him. He could accept the time I had to spend with Dudley, after all Dudley was his heir, but Harry… Harry was a nothing to him. He had wanted to drown Harry when we found him or abandon him someplace where he could not be tracked back to us. Maybe someplace only the animals would find him. It took all I had to convince him that it would be dangerous to get rid of him. That they would be upset if they found him dead or missing."

"As long as I didn't pay extra attention to Harry… As long as I was hard on the poor boy then Vernon wouldn't hurt him, won't beat him to bad."

"He hit Potter?!?!" Snape snapped in surprise.

Petunia nodded her head sadly. "Vernon liked to hurt him. But if Harry was busy with chores for me then Vernon would leave him alone. Harry was safe then."

"And his eyes?"

"I would never leave Harry alone with Vernon. I never trusted him, I was afraid of what he would do." Petunia rested her head in her hands as she continued. "In the beginning of July I had to take Dudley to the store for new clothes. Vernon was at work. Harry was safe, I thought. When we return Vernon was already there. He had been there for hours. When I asked about Harry, Vernon said the boy was sick and in his room."

"Vernon was so happy. So proud of himself. I tried to check on Harry but Vernon changed the locks. I tried. I really did try."

"When Vernon finally let Harry out of his room… I wanted to take him to the hospital…" Petunia touched the bruises on her face. "It was no fun for him to beat up a 'blond beggar' as he called Harry."

"Where is he? Where is your husband?" Snape asked.

"I don't know." She said with a shake of her head. "He ran away when he realized what you kind would do to him when you found out what he did." Petunia was silence, her hair hiding her face. "Can you help him? Can you make him see again?"

"I don't know." Snape simply said. "Old wounds are hard to heal with magic, sometimes they're impossible to fix."

"But I thought…."

Snape shocked his head sadly. "That's what many young witches and wizards think. But magic can't solve all the problems of the world. In truth it creates more problems than it solves."

"What's going to happened now?"

"You're going to pack everything you absolutely want to keep while I gather Potter's possessions." Snape explained as Petunia looked at him in confusion Snape reached out and squeezed her hand gently. "We failed you. As a community we failed to protect you and Harry. We locked you and the children in with a monster with no way to escape. I can't changed the past but I can promise you I'll help you create a new future."

Tears ran down Petunia's face as hope once again filled her eyes. "Harry's trunk is in the cupboard under the stairs." She said wiping the tears from her eyes. "It was his bedroom for ten years. Vernon didn't want him anyplace close to us while we slept. Vernon often locked Harry in there for days on end as punishment. He always had the key on him so I couldn't free Harry while he was at work."

~*~

"Potter?" Snape said opening the door to Harry's room once again.

"What do you want, Professor?" Harry replied in a tired flat voice.

Walking over to Harry, Snape laid a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder. "It's time to go." He explained.

"Why? What does it matter. We both know my sight can not be restored." Harry said as a tear ran down his check. "And a wizard without his sight can be a dangerous thing."

"We don't know that Potter. It's possible that Pomfrey will be able to heal you."

Harry sat in silence for a few minutes before speaking. "The last thing I saw… The last image burned in to my mind… Vernon had come home early. He knew Aunt Petunia and Dudley were out for most of the day. He had figured out a way… A way to end my freakish nature. To put me in my place forever."

"He started punching me. Beating me. Hurting me. Then when I was on the ground he pinned me to the floor. I… I thought… I thought he was going to… He just grinned at me. At that moment I feared him more than I fear Voldemort. And then came the pain in my eyes. I screamed and screamed. It was like they were being eaten my acid or cover in lava. Some how I pasted out and when I awoke, I was in my room…. I was blind."

"Harry."

"What's going to happened now Professor. What's going to happen with Aunt Petunia and that monster? You know she's been trying to protect me all these years. I hated her for so long for what she's done but she was doing it to protect me. To protect me from Vernon."

"We're going to Hogwarts. I promised to help your aunt and cousin start a new life, free from that monster."

"And what of me Professor. What will happen to me? It's not like I can take classes any more. I would be a danger to my fellow students." Harry snorted in frustration. "The only class I wouldn't be a danger in is History of Magic."

"You would probably die from boredom." Snape commented. "Binnes was never a living teacher even when he was alive."

A small smile appeared on Harry's face. "You can't lose hope Harry. We'll figure something out. You can't let your uncle win, Harry. You got to keep fighting."

Tears started to run down Harry's face. "Why? Why didn't anyone see what was happening? Why didn't someone help us?" He sobbed as Snape gathered him in his arms.

"I'm ready." Petunia said from the doorway, a small suitcase at her feet.

Snape's eyebrow raised in disbelief at the sight of single small suitcase. "Is that everything? You understand that there will be no coming back for anything you forgot."

Petunia nodded her head in understanding. "There's nothing I want from that monster. All the memories I have from him are bad."

"I need to get my stuff." Harry stated as he wiped his face.

"I have your trunk downstairs Potter." Snape explained as he watches Harry slowly making his way over to his bed. 

Kneeling next to his bed, Harry ran his hands over the floor looking for something. "But you don't have everything professor." They watched in confusion as Harry popped one of the floorboard losses. "I discovered this little hidey hole around my third year. How else to you expect me to do my homework." He explained as he pulled out packages, letters, scrolls, food and his wand.

"I would hide my wand and school books in here as soon as I got home. Vernon would lock my trunk in the cupboard. He wanted me to fail."

Harry suddenly stopped, his brow frowned in confusion. "Professor how are we getting to Hogwarts? Are we taking the train or the Knight Bus?"

"No Potter. It's too dangerous for either the train or bus and the floo system can be intercepted too easily." Snape explained.

The blood rushed from Harry's face, as his breath seems to catch in his throat. "A portkey." He said softly with a tremor in his voice.

Petunia looked on in confusion, only knowing that her nephew was suddenly afraid, very afraid. "It's the fastest and safest way Harry." Snape explained in a soft voice as he tried to reassure Harry. " I'll be with you the whole time Harry. You don't have anything to fear. I'll protect you."

Swallowing nervously Harry nodded his head. "Lets go."


	3. Wear My Sunglasses At Night

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything related to the series but I wish I did.

Bad Author Notes: This is an unedited chapter due to the fact that Sirius Black has kidnapped my editor.

Wear My Sunglasses at Night

By Lady FoxFire

Oct 27, 2002

"Where are we?!?" Harry panicked as his legs collapsed underneath him, throwing him to the ground. "Aunt Petunia where are we?" He asked as he reached out wildly trying to find someone, something to reassure himself

"It's ok Harry." Petunia said as she knelt next to him, her hand rested on his shoulder in a comforting way. "It looks like we're on the outskirts of a town. I can see the building down the road."

"Get up Potter. We're on the road to Hogmeades" Snape snapped as he glared down at the boy and his aunt. "I told you we would portkey to the boarders of Hogwarts. After last year the Headmaster increase the wards on the school. Or didn't you trust me Potter."

"After last year I don't take anything at face value anymore." Harry said standing up. "You were acting too… nice. I wasn't sure you were who you claimed to be."

"And now?" Snape said looking down his nose at Harry. "Do you now believe that I am your greasy potion master?"

Harry turned his face towards his Professor, his sightless eyes staring up at him. "I do now." Potter explained a slight smile on his lips. "So tell me Professor Snape what was it? Was it shock?" 

"Insolent brat." Snape muttered under his breath as he started down the road towards the school,

"My glasses." Potter said suddenly turning towards his aunt. "Aunt Petunia do you have my glasses? I forgot them."

"I have them right here." She said as she dug through the bag on her shoulder. "I thought you would forget them so I packed them."

"Glasses?" Snape asked in confusion as he stopped and looked back at them. "What do you need glasses for?"

Petunia pulled out a pair of glasses and placed them in her nephew's hand. "Mostly for protection." Harry answered as he slipped a pair of dark sunglasses on his face hiding his sightless eyes from the world. "But also so I don't upset anyone. People don't like looking into dead eyes; it's upset them. Makes them pity me. Make them treat me as if I'm completely helpless."

"It allows you to hide from the world." Snape said with a sudden understating. "If they can't see your weakness then they can't use it against you. Is that why you hide the fact you were being abused from everyone?"

Harry cocked his head to the side, lost in thought. "I never hide it professor. People would never look or if they did they never believed." He answered in a sad lonely tone.

"Umm I hate to ask this but are we safe here?" Petunia asked nervously as she looked around nervously. 

"She's right. It's best if we proceed to Hogwarts." Snape said with a sigh.

"We're off to see the wizard. The wonderful wizard of Hogwarts." Harry sang off key as Petunia thread her arm in Harry's.

"Wonderful. He's gone insane." Snape mumbled under his breath as he led them up the road toward the school.

~*~

"It wonderful." Petunia whispered her voice full of child-like wonder and awe as she got her first look at Hogwarts.

Harry smile as he heard her reaction in his aunt's voice. "You should see it at night from the middle of the lake with the castle aglow with lights. It looks like a fairy tale castle, the type you find sleeping princesses in and dragon's outside guarding it from Prince Charming." Harry explained as he remember the first time he saw the school.

As they past through the gate and walked towards the door of Hogwarts they could hear Hagrid's booming voice. "Now this little creature is a Fennec from the desert of Egypt. In Ancient Egypt witches and wizards used them as messages and as a form of defense. The Fennec has the ability…."

"Hey look its Harry Potter!" A boy's voice called out from Hagrid's class. "Potter is back!"

"Wonderful! It's my favorite stalker." Harry sighed in frustration at the sound of Colin Creevey.

Snape snort in amusement at Potter's statement. "Yes he does have some stalker quality about him."

"Professor." Harry turned toward Snape's voice. Harry's voice betrayed his uneasy in meeting any of his fellow students at this time.

Snape's attention turns to the number of Gryffindor rushing to see their hero. "Mr. Creevey." Snape snarled at the young Gryffindor, his eyes cold and heartless. "I guess you return to your class before I decide that you need to scrub all the cauldrons in the castle."

Colin skidded to a halt and looked at the Potion Master in fear. Swallowing nervously, Creevey nodded his head before turning and walking back to his class, looking over his shoulder once in a while.

"Irritating pest." Snape mutter under his breath as he watches Colin walk into a tree, knocking himself unconscious.

"You should try living with him!" Harry chuckled as the continued up the path. "Most of us have developed an inborn Colin and his camera radar system. You don't want to get caught by Colin coming out of the shower."

Snape looked down at Potter in shock. "He won't dare!" He sputtered.

Harry turned his head so that his face was facing Snape, a twisted grin on his face. "Oh but he did!

"If he tried to take my photo I would shove his camera up…."

"Ron almost did." Harry said with an evil chuckle. "Luckily Fred and George was able to save Colin. Minus the camera of course." 

"Of course." Snape replied as Petunia looked upon the men disapproval but with a twinkle of merriment in her eyes.

~*~

"Harry! Welcome back." Dumbledore exclaimed with a smile, his eyes twinkling as Harry and his aunt followed Snape into the office. "And Mrs. Dursley. A pleasure to finally meet you."

"Nice to meet you Headmaster." Petunia said politely as she looked around Dumbledore's office in awe. "And please call me Petunia, I don't go by Mrs. Dursley any more."

Dumbledore blinked in surprise at Petunia's statement. "Of course Petunia. Would you care for a lemon drop?" He asked holding up dish of candy. Petunia shook her head no as she wondered over to Fawkes. With a shrug of his shoulder Dumbledore popped a piece of the hard candy in his mouth before turning towards Harry. "Why weren't you on the train, Harry? We were worried about you. You should have sent a message to us if you were having trouble."

"I just didn't see the point in it Headmaster." Harry explained as he took off his sunglasses. He turned and blinked his sightless eyes at the headmaster.

"By Merlin's beard." Dumbledore whispered in shock as he sunk in to his chair. The lemon drop falling from his gaping mouth as he stared at Harry. "What happened child!?! What happened to your eyes?"

"Why?" Harry said with all the pain and anguished he felt in his voice. "Why did you leave us there. Why did you allow him to do this?"

"I don't understand Harry." Dumbledore said in confusion as he looked at Petunia and Snape for understanding, for an explanation. "Please tell me what happened." 

"Abuse. Torture. Hate." Petunia said from where she stood stoking the phoenix's feathers. "You place Harry in my house but you never checked on him. You never checked that he was safe. That he was loved. That he was wanted. You trapped us in that house. You trapped Harry, my son and myself in that house with a monster. And no one cared. No one cared to check on us even once." 

Petunia walked over and sat down in a chair near the windows. She then began the tale of abuse in the house and her disparate struggle to protect the Harry and her own son.

Dumbledore sat in silence as Petunia finished her tale. "I… I… I don't know what to say to either one of you. I had assumed that Harry would be safe there. That he would have been cared for. I never thought…"

"That right. You never thought." Harry snapped at Hogwarts' Headmaster. "You left us in that house. You left him there to take my sight."

"Harry!" Petunia said in surprise at her nephew's savage attack on Dumbledore.

"No. He's right." Dumbledore said in a defeated tone. "I should have watched him better. I should have kept my promise to your mother Harry. She make me promise to watch after you if something would have happen to them and your godfather."

Snape suddenly sniff in disgust. "Well I guess we can finally put that mangy mutt to use finally. While I rather not have him underfoot he could be useful right now."

"Fluffy?" Dumbledore said in confusion. "I hardly think this is time for that animal."

Snape snorted in surprise. "Wrong mangy mutt. I was thinking that his Godfather could be of a use right now. He could act as a guide dog and as protection for Potter while the boy learn to do magic without his sight."

"His Godfather." Petunia stuttered. "The mass murder!"

"Actual he's an innocent man. But I'm sure he'll gladly kill Vernon." Harry explained as he leaned his face into the sunlight. "So who's going to break the news to him? I won't suggest that it be Moony he would probably help Sirius curve Vernon up."

Dumbledore lean forwards his head in his hands. "I'm getting to old for this." He mumbled to himself. With a sigh he lean back in his chair. "Severus would you please take Mr. Potter to the hospital wing. Perhaps there is something that Poppy could do for him. Meanwhile Petunia and I have to discuss her future."

~*~

"This way Potter." Snape said as he placed Harry's hand on his shoulder.

"What do you think will happen professor?" Harry asked as the Potion Master led him down the halls towards the hospital wing.

"I don't know. I expect that the Headmaster will help your aunt and cousin set up a new life safe from your uncle."

"His not my uncle. He's a…." Harry's voice trailed off as his hand slipped from Snape's shoulder

"Potter?" Snape turned towards Harry. Taking a few steps away from his teacher, Harry cocked his head to the side, listening for something. "Harry?" 

Harry raised his hand toward his professor, motioning him for silence. "I hear something. Voices."

"The Secret Chamber." Snape whispered unknowingly.

"No. This is something different. It's all around us." Harry explained, his face showing his confusion. "Can't you hear it?"

Snape shook his head before realizing that Harry couldn't see him. "No I can't hear anything. Can you understand what they're saying?"

"No. I can't quite make it out." Harry said his brow furrowed in frustration. "It's not…. It's gone. They've stopped."

Snape looked around nervously. "Let's get out of here." He said grabbing Harry's arm and dragging him towards the hospital wing.

~*~

"And you said that he couldn't understand what the voices were saying?" Dumbledore asked as he watched Snape pace back and forth.

"Potter said the voices were mumbled. That he couldn't make them out." Snape stopped this pacing and ran a shaking hand through his hair. "But he was positive that the voices were unlike the time the Basilisk was released."

"And you didn't hear anything?" Professor McGonagall said from her seat as she chewed on the bottom lip. "Perhaps he imaged it. He has been under a great deal of stress since last year."

Snape shook his head no. "I didn't hear a thing Minerva but that doesn't mean Harry imaged the voices either."

Dumbledore looked deeply into the crackling fire, lost in thought. "It could be that Harry…" Just then a knock came at the door, all eyes locked upon it. "Severus would you please open the door. I expect that it's Poppy."

Madam Pomfrey came in to the room, her face answering their unspoken question. With a weary sigh Pomfrey sank into a chair.

"WELL?!?!?" The normal calm McGonagall exploded.

"I'm sorry that I took so long but I wanted a second opinion." Pomfrey explained.

"That's fine Poppy." Dumbledore said with a nod of his head. "Please go on."

"Do you remember Deana Donovan, a Ravenclaw from about eight years ago?" Poppy started her tale. "She went on and became an ophthalmologist." Seeing the blank looks on their face. "She's a doctor specializing in diseases and injuries of the eyes. While she was train for be a surgeon at a Muggle university she meet her husband, Rick Carnahan. To make a long story short…"

"Too late." Snape mumbled under his breath.

"I sent my report on Harry's condition to them to see if they have a possible treatment for the poor child." Pomfrey said ignoring Snape comment.

"And?" McGonagall growled in frustration.

Pomfrey sighed wearily before explaining what she had learned from the two doctors. "If Harry had been able to receive treatment from St. Mungos with seventy two hours of the injury they would have been able to save his sight. A Muggle hospital would not have been able to help him." 

"Poppy." Dumbledore said drawing their attentions. "Is there anything that can be done. You said that Deana and her husband was doing research on eye injuries, have them made any break through?"

"Due to the nature of the injury and the amount of scar tissue present…" Pomfrey shook her head. "At this time there is nothing they can do. Perhaps in a few years there might be a treatment. But at this time there is nothing that can be done."

~*~

__

"BOY! Get down here. NOW!" Uncle Vernon bellowed from the front of the stairs.

"Coming sir." Harry said as he rushed out of his room. "I wasn't expecting you home so soon." Harry said nervously as he started down the stair, his eyes never leaving Vernon's face for a moment. "Aunt Petunia and Dudley have gone shopping. They said they won't be back till around three."

"We're celebrating today." Vernon ignored Harry's comments about his wife and son. "I signed a hundred million pound contract today. Grunnings is now the solo provide of drills to British Petroleum."

"Congratulation Uncle Vernon. I'm sure Aunt Petunia and Dudley will be proud of you." Harry said uneasily as he stood on the last step watching his uncle.

"Yes they will be." Uncle Vernon's grin slowly transformed into a cruel evil smile. "I also figured something else out." He said as he grabbed Harry by the arm, throwing him from the stair into the far wall.

"You see boy I finally figured out a way to keep you from that freak school forever." Vernon said as he rained abuse down on this young nephew. "If you can't see you can't do magic!"

"**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**" Harry woke screaming.

"Harry?!?" Madam Pomfrey rushed to her only patient, wrapping her dressing gown around her. "What is it child?" she said as she gathered the crying child in her arms. "Was it a dream about You Know Who?"

Harry pulled back from her and silently shook his head. "I was dreaming about that day… the day Vernon…" Harry's shaking fingers brushes over his eyes.

"The day that monster took your sight." Pomfrey finished what Harry could not. "Oh Harry." She said softly as she stroked his hair in a motherly fashion, rocking him in her arms. "I'm sorry. I wish I could made it all better."

Harry arms snaked around her and held her tight. "So do I. So do I." Harry whispered into her dressing gown.

Poppy held Harry until he started to draft off to sleep. "Try and get some sleep Harry." Pomfrey whisper as she laid Harry down and tucked him in. "You're safe here. No one will harm you."

Harry snuggled down under his blanket. Madam Pomfrey's footsteps echoed as she walked back to her room. He was almost asleep when he suddenly heard the faint sounds of a lullaby coming out of nowhere.

"Safe." Harry whispered as his eyes closed and he fell to sleep. "I'm safe."


	4. Snuffles the Guide Dog

Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series. If I did Sirius would be chained to my bedroom and I would auction off Severus to the highest bidder.

Bad Author Notes: Where's Dudley? Where's Dudley? That's all I'm hearing! **_ARG!!!_** What about the voices Harry's hearing?

Snuffles, The Guide Dog

By Lady FoxFire

Dec 7, 2002

The Great Hall was full of noise as the students sat eating their breakfast, discussing their classes, fellow students or whatever they felt like. Silence slowly descends upon the students as if in an invisible wave as one by one they caught sight of Harry walking with Professor McGonagall towards the Gryffindor table. His dark sunglasses were reflecting the early morning light.

When they reached the Gryffindor table, McGonagall placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and directed him into his seat next to Ron, across from Hermione. "Your cup is at 11 o'clock. Bacon is at 12, toast is at 2 and sausage is beyond your glass. If you need any help just ask child."

"Thank you professor," Harry replied as he reached out tentatively for the toast. McGonagall watched him for a few minutes before turning to the High Table where a number of the professors looked over in confusion. This count included Remus Lupin.

"Harry?" Neville said nervously from where he sat next to Hermione. "What happened Harry? Why weren't you on the train?"

"Yeah and what's with the glasses?" Dean asked from next to Harry. "They're cool but don't you have problems seeing with them on?"

"Not really Dean considering that I can't see any more," Harry answered before shoving some bacon into his mouth.

"What!" Ron exclaimed as he sprayed food all over Lavender who was seating across of him talking to Parvati about Professor Trelawney's class.

"Ronald Weasley!" Lavender squealed as she stood up trying to brush the food from her clothing. "You'll pay for this! Just you wait, I'll get you for this!"

"Lavender sit down and shut up," Dean snapped at her before turning to Harry, "What do you mean that you can't see? You're just kidding right?"

Harry reached up and pulled off his glasses giving his classmates a chance to see his sightless green eyes. "Nope. No joke. Vernon decided that I wasn't going back to school again," He said as he slipped his glasses back on. "If you can't see, you can't do magic. At least that was his logic at that point."

"Madam Pomfrey could…" Hermione blurted out suddenly which snapped everyone out of his or her shock.

"Tried already. Nothing they can do. They even contacted a couple experts in the hope…" Harry said calmly with a shrug, "But from what I understand I get to have a dog at least. Always wants to have a big black dog. Maybe I could let it sleep at the foot of my bed."

"Harry?" A voice suddenly came from behind him as someone laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Hello Professor Lupin," Harry said turning towards him. "Are you back to teach?"

"Yes Harry I am," Remus replies nervously. "Ummm… could we talk?"

"Sure," Harry said as he stands up as he grabbed a slice of toast and some bacon, "Hope you don't mind me eating while we talk."

Remus smiled as Harry wolfed down half of his sandwich in two bites, "You know your father was the same way."

Together Remus and Harry walked out of the Great Hall as whispers and rumors spreading among the students with each footstep they took. 

"How is Harry going to stop You-Know-Who if he can't see?" was the main question on everyone's lips.

~*~

"I take it that Sirius has been informed," Harry said calmly as they walked down the halls.

"No, not yet. He's been called but…" Remus struggled for words as he ran a hand through his hair. "Hell Harry, Dumbledore just told me what happened this morning. Why didn't you tell anyone about what was happening?"

"It should be interesting to try to keep Sirius from tracking down and trying to murder Vernon," Harry said calmly ignoring Moony's question, "Do you have any idea what I could do for Aunt Petunia? She's spent most of her life trying to protect me, having to share her bed with that…I feel like I owe her something."

"Harry…"

"McGonagall said that Dumbledore is sending them to the United States or Canada, maybe even Australia. They'll have new faces, new bodies, new memories…Vernon will be gone forever from their life."

"Harry…" Remus started again but Harry shook his head. 

"Moony we both know that life isn't fair. You're a werewolf and I'm the Boy Who Lived but that doesn't change a thing. Each day we have to go through life alone."

"No Harry! We aren't alone. Ron, Hermione, the Weasley family, Sirius, myself…we're all here for you. We always were."

Harry bowed his head; he's breaths became shaky. "I know. It's just that…" Remus gathered Harry into his arms and held him, "Every morning before I open my eyes…I pray…I wish with all my might…but it's always the same. Darkness."

Remus wrapped his arms tighter around the boy, trying to comfort him. "We'll figure out something."

"How am I to stop Voldemort? How am I to protect my friends?"

~*~

The Gryffindor common room bustled with noise as the students talked about Harry's condition and what it could mean to them all.

"How is he going to stop You-Know-Who without his eye site?"

"You think I have a chance to be the Seeker?"

"I couldn't go on without my sight. Not to be able to do magic, never being able to fly again…"

"…Canary Cremes in to professors' food…"

"We're done that before! We need something new. Something big."

At that moment the portrait door swung open and the trio walked in with Harry on Hermione's arm and Ron behind watching his back. The room immediately plunged into silence.

"What, did someone die?" Harry said breaking the silence. 

"Ummm…Harry…" Neville struggle to say something but Harry interrupted him.

"I'm blind Neville, not helpless. I'm not going to break down if someone says something. I've had time to adapt," Harry said as he pulled away from Hermione and took a few steps farther into the room alone. 

"What I need from you, from all of you, is for you to watch my back; to keep the Slytherin off of me. We all know that some of them will go after me to make points with Voldemort."

Most of the Gryffindor nodded their heads in agreement while a few of the first years looked nervously at their elders. "We're with you Harry!" someone within the crowd yelled out. 

"Yeah! You can depend on us Harry," The group cheered.

A huge grin broke out on Harry's face as he listens to the support and love from his friends. "There is one thing else for all of you especially from you Dean. Keep things picked up. I can't see if you left something in the middle of the floor or if you moved furniture until I run into it."

"Hey, why did you center me out?" Dean called out from were he sat near the fire.

"Cause you're the messiest!" The fifth year Gryffindor boys called out together causing the other to laugh as Dean turns red.

"I'm not _that_ messy," Dean pouted as he trying to defend himself.

"Yes you are Dean," Ron called out, "It's safer to enter the twin's room at the Burrow than it is to enter your area in our dorm room."

Harry chuckled at the Ron's statement. "He's right Dean. I've felt safer enter the twin's bedroom than going near your bed even when I could only see it. Speaking of the twins, where are they?"

"Over here Harry," One of the red haired twins called out from where they sat in private, plotting their next prank.

Harry took a few steps over towards them, his hands out reaching out for things to trip him up, "I need to talk to the two of you. In private."

Fred quickly left his seat and hurried over to Harry. Grasping his upper arm, Fred led him back towards his brother. "What did you want to talk about Harry?"

"My family legacy," Harry said simply as he sat down motioning the twin closer. 

~*~

Through the thick blanket of fog a huge dark shape silently slipped among the trees. It weaved its way through the trees growing closer and closer to the castle. The cloaked figure got so close it was outside of the castle. The fog seemed to absorb all sound as the dark form crept towards the pacing figure. 

"**SHIT!**" Remus exclaimed as a wet nose touched the back on his hand. "**Damn you Sirius!** What are you trying to do to me, give me a bloody heartache?"

If it was possible the huge black hound at Remus's feet laughed at him. "Very funny you mangy mutt. Get inside before someone sees you," Remus said opening the door for the dog, "Why couldn't you have been something with hands? You could have open your own doors then," Remus grumbled around a yawn. "Won't have to get up at O'Dark Thirty to let you in."

Sirius snuffled at Remus' comment as he padded down the hall towards a blank section of the wall. With a quick couple taps on the wall a section swung aside. Sirius and Moony disappeared inside before the wall swung shut.

"Ok what is it?" The tall, slim muscular man with his long black hair braid down his back stood in place of the dog, "What was so important that Dumbledore pulled me off my mission? Does it have to deal with Harry? Is he all right? Where is he? He hasn't been hurt, has he?" Some how he was able to say all of his in one breath.

"Sirius, you better sit down," Remus said as he refused to look Sirius in the eye. "It is about Harry," Sirius stared at Remus in shock. 

"Something happened to Harry," Sirius said sinking down into a chair. "He's dead isn't he? Death Eaters found him and killed him. He's dead!" His head fell into his hands as a sob racked through his body.

A sad smile crossed Remus face, as she shook his head no. 

"No Sirius, he's alive," Remus took a deep breath as he ran his hand through his hair, "I don't know how to break this to go so I'm just going to tell you. He's blind. Harry's blind."

Sirius looked up; his eyes wet with unshed tears. "He's alive?" He whispered in disbelief, "He's not dead?"

"He's upstairs in the tower, probably asleep," Moony said simply calming his friend's fear, "Sirius, Harry can _not_ see. And it's permanent."

"How? How did it happen?" Sirius asked as what Remus was telling him just began to sink in. 

"It was Snape's fault, was it? It happen in his potion class," His hands clutched into fists at the thought that his old archenemy had harm his Godson.

Remus shook his head again, "It was his uncle," Remus knelt down next to Sirius, "He wanted to destroy Harry's world, so he figured that if Harry couldn't see then he couldn't do magic."

Sirius flew off the chair, throwing it behind him as he stormed to the passageway. "I'll **kill** him. I'll **rip** him limb from limb!" He growled, his eyes glowing with hate.

Remus grabbed Sirius by his shirt and threw him into the wall. 

"I don't care what you want to do. Right now Harry needs you more than he needs revenge," He let go of his old friend's shirt and ran a hand through his hair. "He's barely holding it together, Sirius."

Remus began to pace the room as he tried to explain his concerns, "He's defenseless against anyone who wants to harm him or control him. Could you image what would happen to him if Voldemort would get his hands on him? Or someone likes Fudge? He would use Harry to gain more power, more control over the community."

Sirius slid down the wall until he could go no farther.

"You're right," Sirius replied as he looked up at his old friend, "What do they need me to do?"

"Harry needs you to act as a guide dog for him and if necessary protect him," Remus explains as he sat down next to Sirius, "But there's something else Sirius. Harry's hearing voices."

"Meaning what? That he's hearing voices that ain't there or we just can't hear." 

Remus shrugged slightly, "Don't know. I wasn't there at the time, Severus was. He said he didn't hear anything but he believes that Harry did. And that it wasn't voices in his head. But one thing Harry was sure about was that it wasn't a snake he was hearing." 

~*~

The door to the fifth year Gryffindor boys' dorm room swung opened silently as a huge black hound padded into the room. The dog nosed the door and it closed with a click. His nose to the floor, the dog sniffed his way around the room until it found Potter's bed.

Cocking his head to the side the dog let out a small whimper before bunching his feet together and leaped onto Harry's bed. The sudden new weight on the bed caused the sleeping child to bounce awake.

"**What!**" Harry squeaked as he scrabble back until his back was pressed against the headboard. "Who's there? What's going on?"

By this time Ron had already rolled off his bed unto the floor, his wand in his hand aimed at the dog sitting motionless on the bed. "Sirius," Ron hissed as he lowered his wand. He quickly looked over at the other boys. "Go back to sleep. It was a dream," He said to the few sleepy-eyed boys looking around in confusion.

"Ron?" Harry whispered as turned his head in the direction in which his friend stood.

"It's okay Harry. Snuffles decided to wake you up," Ron explained as he reached out to pull Harry's curtains shut. "I'm going to close your curtains and cast a silencing spell so you can talk in peace. And in the morning I'm going to have your dog fixed for waking us up."

"Remind me to help you," Harry replied around a yawn.

"Waking up Ron is a dangerous occupation," Harry said as he grin and as he felt the bed shift.

"Sirius?" Harry called out nervously when Sirius didn't replied. 

A sniffle came from where Sirius sat. "You would really have me fixed?" He said in a pouting tone.

Harry chuckled at the comment, "Only if you keep waking me up that way."

"I'll try something different next time. Maybe turning your sheets to ice," Sirius replied.

"You do that and I'll fix you myself," Harry stated in an evil tone. Sirius grinned at Harry.

"You get the cruel evil streak from your mother. She was always promising to have me fixed. But I'm will to beat you have the same weakness she did."

"Oh and what was that?" Harry said wearily.

Sirius suddenly attacked Harry, "She was ticklish," He said as he tortured Harry.

"Stop! Stop Sirius! Please stop!" Harry gasped in between laughing as he tried to fight off Sirius.

"So you and Ron ain't going to try to have me fix?" Sirius asked as he backed off.

Harry lay there gasping for breath, "Can't promise you anything about Ron but I can promise you that I won't try to have you fix for waking me up tonight."

"I accept," Sirius said in a smug tone, when he realized what Harry had promised. "Hey! That not what I meant!"

Harry's face broke into a huge grin, "Promise made under torture are not binding in a court of law."

A low growl came from Sirius at Harry's comment.

"So you're my guide dog," Harry said quickly changing the topic, "I bet Snape is going to have a anarythrum over that!"

"Harry," Sirius said sadly as he plucked at Harry's bed sheets, "Why didn't you tell me about what your uncle was doing to you? Why you didn't tell me about the abuse?"

"First off he's **_not_** my uncle," Harry spat out firmly, leaving no room for debate on that fact, "And he wasn't hitting me. Ever since I received my letter, he wouldn't hit me. He would just yell at me or threaten me but he would _neve_r__psychical hurt me again…until now,"

"But before he did," Sirius saying what Harry wouldn't, "You could have told someone before! Why didn't you? You could have told a teacher, a neighbor, anybody…"

"Clumsily little boy. Wrestling with his cousin. Fighting with neighboring kids," Harry explained with a shrug of his shoulder, "Vernon had an excuse for everything and if he went to far. I had the flu sometimes," Harry grabbed hold of his pillow and hugged it towards him. 

"Did you know that there are ways to hit a person so the bruises don't show? If you hit on the torso or on the legs, clothing will hide the bruise. But you had to make sure not to damage the face or hands. It's harder to explain bruises there."

"And no one notice?" Sirius asked in disbelief, "Ten years of abuse from that monster and no one noticed? No one notice the bruises or that you were so thin?" 

"Once. Only once did someone asked about the bruises. And only once did I tell the truth," Harry said in a dead voice, "I was seven at the time when my teacher saw the bruises from the whipping. She said she was I could trust. Someone who would protect me from him."

"What happened?" Sirius asked, dreading what would come out of Harry's mouth.

"I told her everything, made her promise not to tell anyone. I didn't want Vernon from finding out I was talking to people. She promised and then she turned around and went to someone in the school's administration. She told them everything and they went to Vernon with it. It turns out that person was an old school chum."

Sirius crawled up the bed until he was next to Harry, "No one is every going to hurt you again Harry. I swore on my soul that I'll protect you," Sirius whispered into Harry's hair as he hugged the boy towards him.

Harry clutched at Sirius's clothes as tears began to fall down his face, "Because it was so close to winter break…Vernon took his leather belt and…"

Stoking his hair, Sirius slowly began to rock Harry as he told the tale. 

~*~

Ron yawned loudly as he rolled up in his covers. He stares at the curtains encircling Harry's bed, thinking.

"I'm worried about him," Dean said from his bed, "If I was suddenly blinded I wouldn't be taking it as calmly as he is."

"He's right Ron," Seamus replies as he sat up in his bed, "He's keeping it all in. He's going to crack."

"He'll be fine. Harry's made of stronger stuff than the rest of us," Ron mumbled in reply.

"Everything and everyone has their limits Ron," Dean stated as he looked over at Potter's bed, "Even Harry."

Ron stated up at looked over at Seamus and Dean, "He's not going to crack. You'll see. He's be fine," Ron snapped. Laying back down, Ron once again took up his vigilance, "Please be fine Harry," he whispered to himself.

~*~

"I never realized how Aunt Petunia was able to protect me. She was able to keep Vernon from punishing me worst than he did," Harry leaned away from Sirius to wipe the tears from his face, "When he was done he threw me in the closet until school started once again. Aunt Petunia would give me food everyday. I don't think Vernon would care if I had starved to death."

Sirius pulled Harry back to him, "It's my fault. Everything you've gone through is my fault," He said to himself as he rested his check onto of Harry's head.

"What?" Harry reared back in shock, "What do you mean it's your fault? It's not your fault!"

"Yes it is! If I hadn't gone after Peter you wouldn't have grown up with them," Sirius explained, "You would have grown up with me."

"You're wrong Sirius. I would have grown up with them. Think it through Sirius. They had already left me on the doorstep before you went after Peter."

Sirius shook his head no, "No, no Harry. If I hadn't gone after Peter I would have raised you. I would have taken care of you," His voice broke with all the emotions he tried to hide. "You would have know…you would have known you were loved."

"Sirius, I know I am loved but you're putting your faith in the Ministry," Harry stated with a small sad smile, "These are the people who sent you to prison without a trail. Even if you hadn't gone after Peter, they would still have capture you and throw you in Azkaban. And Peter would have been free."

Harry reached out and allowed his finger's tips to brush over Sirius's faces, for his fingers to trace the tears running down his face.

"They didn't want answers. They didn't want the truth. They wanted an end. They wanted to forget it and they didn't care if the guilty were free and the innocents were imprisoned. They didn't care. Think about Sirius. Not ever Dumbledore question your so-called betrayal. He didn't ever question about what my life was like. If you want to blame someone for what I went through then blame Vernon, it was his choice to do this to me. Blame Ministry for not caring about the truth. Blame Dumbledore for breaking his promise. But don't blame yourself." 

Harry reached up and wiped the tears from his face, "Can you image if Peter had been free to move around the wizard community? And because he was my parents' friend…"

"He would have been given access to you. Remus wasn't cause he's a werewolf but Peter would have," Sirius finishing Harry's statement, his eyes wide with shock. "By Merlin all this years I thought…"

"You never failed me Sirius. You didn't know it at the time but you were protecting me the best you could. Granted I would have rather grown up with you," He said with a sad smile.

They sat in silence looking at each other thinking about what had been said when Sirius finally let out a shaky sigh, "So when did you become such a philosopher?"

Harry shrugged, "Two months of being left alone in a room, you end up thinking about life," With a sigh Harry leaned against Sirius, resting his head on his shoulder, "This is getting kind of depressing."

"You're right," Sirius said as he tucked Harry's head under his chin, "So do you have anything less depressing to talk about?" An evil grin suddenly grew on Harry's face. 

"Well I have gone into the family business." 


	5. Animagus, Magusimal or Just a Smart Mutt

Disclaimer: Oh dear do I have to put in a Disney disclaimer beside the Harry Potter ones? Oh deary dear what is an author to do. **drop pants and show lawyer her rear end**

Bad Author Notes: Can you name that movie? Thank you Bookworm! Without you I could do justice to the potion ingredients

Animagus, Magusimal or Just a Smart Mutt

By Lady FoxFire

Dec 27, 2002

Sirius groaned as he opened his eyes a crack. He lifted his head enough to look at Harry as the child lay peacefully next to him, his head resting on Sirius's chest. Sirius smiled gently at the sight of his godson's slumbering form, and gently brushed aside one of Harry's unruly locks of get-black hair from his eyes.

"If only this would last forever," Sirius thought wistfully to himself, relishing the placid atmosphere that had enveloped them like a warm blanket. His thoughts were disturbed by a cacophony of chattering voices resounding from beyond the scarlet curtains of Harry's four-poster.

"Has anyone seen my shoes?"

"Trevor? Trevor, where are you?"

"Hey Ron, what about Harry?"

"Let him sleep; he's had a hard night."

"Do we have Potions today?"

"It's time to wake up, Harry," Sirius whispered as he gently shook Harry. 

Harry slowly opened his sleep-incrusted eyes. "Wha… Morning?" He mumbled as he lifted his head off of Sirius

"Yep it's morning, so time to get up, Harry." Sirius explains.

"Don't want to," mumbled Harry as his head plopped back down onto the soft pillow.

Harry's head bounced as Sirius chuckled merrily at the boy. "Hey, you need to get up. Today's the day you get to introduce me to everyone."

"Huh?" Harry raised his head and his eyes squinted as if to see his godfather.

Sirius grinned slyly like the sneaky dog he was. "I wonder if Trelawney will run away when she sees me, screaming about the Grim."

"If she doesn't die first from seeing the dreaded Grim," Harry snorted and started laughing.

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "What's so funny?"

Harry sat up and turned his face towards where Sirius lay. "Just transform so we can start the Grim Terror of Hogwarts."

~*~

"Morning, Harry," Neville said as Harry pulled open his curtains. "Harry…" Neville's eyes grew wide as he stared gapingly at the other figure lying languidly on Harry's bed. "Run, Harry. Run right now!"

The panic in Neville's voice drew Seamus and Dean's attention. "By Merlin." Seamus squeaked as he grabbed the back of Neville's robe and started to drag him towards the door.

"Harry…" Dean's voice quaked as he too backed away from Harry's bed and the huge black hound that sat upon it. "Harry… Harry there is a Grim seating in your bed."

At that moment Ron walked in toweling off his wet red hair. "What's' wrong with you guys?" he asked as he saw the panicking boys. Neville raised a shaking hand and pointed towards the dog. 

Ron looked at Snuffles as he sat on Harry's bed then back at his roommate. With a shake of his head, Ron marched over to the bed. Going face to face with the hound, Ron pitched his voice so only Harry and Sirius could hear him. "If we have a repeat of last night's performance, I'll explain to Ginny about the Teddy Bear."

Snuffles laid his head on the bed and whimpered as he looked up at Ron with big wistful eyes.

Ron turned back to where Dean, Seamus and Neville stood with their mouths hanging open in shock staring at their fellow Gryffindor. "It's just a dog," Ron said in a tone Hermione had used on him many times in the past.

"Is that what you guys were panicking over? You thought Snuffles was a Grim?" Harry chuckled as he scratched behind the hound's ear.

"Five sickles that Lavender will be the first to either faint or run off screaming when she see Sniffles," Dean joked as he recovered from the shock before the other boys, grinning like a madman.

"It's Snuffles," Ron and Harry corrected together.

"My money is on Parvati. She's more likely to run off, screaming," Seamus stated realizing how everyone will react to Harry's guide dog.

"Why don't you three go down to the common room and gather everyone so they can meet Harry's new guide dog." Ron suggested as he started searching for clean clothes to wear for the day. "And while you're down there, think up a way to get Snuffles up to Trelawney's tower."

As soon as the door was closed, Ron cast a silencing and locking spell upon it. Immediately Snuffles transformed back into Sirius and collapsed to the floor howling with laughter. "Did you see their faces?" He got out around his laughter.

"I thought Seamus was going to wet himself," Ron sputtered as he joined the laughter.

Chuckling evilly Harry said. "Tomorrow will be interesting if they can figure a way to get you up in the tower. If you're willing, Sirius."

"To play a prank on Sibyll, you'd better believe it!" Sirius exclaimed with a twinkle in his eyes. "But wouldn't someone have told her about the 'Grim' walking around Hogwarts?"

"Nah," Ron said as he pulled his shirt on. "She doesn't come out of her lofty tower for practically anything any more." He glanced at the clock. "Shit, you two need to take your showers before someone comes up looking for us," Ron said as he shoved towels into Sirius's hands. "I'll gather your stuff up, Harry. Just hurry up."

In less than ten minutes, Ron and a damp Harry were being led out of their dormitory by the new guide dog, walking down the stairs towards the common room.

"About time, we were wondering if we would have to go up there and drag you out," One of the twins chided jokingly as he grinned knowingly.

All eyes turned towards the staircase. "**IT'S THE GRIM!!!!**" Lavender screamed as Parvati collapsed into a dead faint. "**ITS KILLED PARVATI!**" Lavender runs screaming from the common room. "**IT'S THE GRIM!**"

The Gryffindors, except for 5th year boys, the Weasley children, and Hermione, pressed themselves against the wall and inched towards the exit.

"**Bloody hell, Snuffles is just a dog,**" Hermione swore which caused everyone in the room to stop and stare at the normally perfect young lady.

"Herm, you swore." Harry exclaimed before collapse into laughter.

~*~

"Gather around, children," Hagrid's booming voice called out as he dragged a huge box covered with a heavy tarp towards the students. "Today we got an Allghoi khorkhoi, or more commonly know as a Mongolian Death Worm."

"_What_," Blaise Zabini squealed as he scrabbled away from the box. Immediately every student took a step or two back. " You can't have one here! They're bad luck!"

"Nonsense, they're just poor misunderstood beasties!" Hagrid cooed as he pulled the tarp off the box. The glass box was almost completely filled with sand.

"Yeah, poor misunderstood beasties that squirt acids, which immediately corrodes anything it touches. Bloody hell, just touching the worm can kill you in seconds!" Blaise informed the others as he continued to back away from the creature

Suddenly the head of a fat bright red creature broke through the sand and started spitting acid at the walls of the glass box. "Umm Hagrid?" Harry spoke up as Snuffles tried to drag him away. "It can't get out of the box, can it?"

"Of course not, Harry," Hagrid replied in his gruff but friendly tone. "If it got out, it would die. It's too cold here for this poor beastie."

"Oh!" Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"I mean, it would survive for a couple days, but eventually it would die."

"Oh!" Everyone said as they once again started to back away.

"Wow!" Hagrid said with awe. "The acid is melting the glass."

"Hagrid?" Hermione suddenly spoke drawing the half giant's attention. "Harry's not feeling well so I'm going to take him to the hospital wing." Hermione planted an elbow in Harry's side when he tried to say something.

"I'll help," Ron chimed in.

"Me too," the other Gryffindors said as they looked for a way to escape the class.

"Alright, but hurry back," Hagrid said, never noticing the melted glass dripping to the ground or the envious looks the Slytherin gave them as they escaped.

"Do you think it will escape?" Seamus asked once they were out of hearing distance.

"I don't know, and I hope to never find out," Ron answered with a backwards glance towards the class. "I could almost pity them. Almost."

"Damn, Hermione, you have sharp elbows," Harry grumbled as he rubbed his side.

"Well it was that or let Snuffles bite you," she replied in a haughty voice.

"You won't do that now would you Snuffles?" Harry asks as he ran his fingers through the dog's thick black fur. 

With a turn of his head Snuffles reassured Harry by licking his hand before turning and growling at Hermione, who in return made scissor-like motions with her fingers while Ron bit his lip to keep from laughing.

"_I saw a peanut stand, heard a rubber band, I saw a needle that winked its eye_," Dean suddenly started to sing_. "But I think I will have seen everything. When I see an elephant fly_."

The others turned to see what made Dean to suddenly break out in song. "Oh my word!" Hermione whispered in awe.

"Did someone put something funny in the food this morning?" Seamus asked.

"What? What is it?" Harry asked as Snuffles started to make a strange choking sound almost like laughter.

"It's McGonagall. She's walking up the path to Hogwarts." Ron said in awe.

"So?" Harry snapped in frustration.

"She has… She has…" Hermione stuttered in shock.

"A pink elephant!" Dean said as he grinned like a demon. "A floating pink elephant! On a leash, even!"

The group quickly intercepted their transfiguration professor. "Professor McGonagall?" Hermione spoke up as the group's spoke person.

"Yes, children?" McGonagall replied as she looked fondly at her students.

"Ummmm… Is that a pink elephant?" Hermione asked nervously as if she didn't believe her eyes.

McGonagall turned and look up at the huge pink beast floating high in the air. "Yes, Miss Granger, I believe it is." She said in a calm voice with only a trace of pleasure in her voice.

"He wouldn't be someone I know, would he?" Harry spoke up a small smile on his face.

"That is a possibility, Mr. Potter," McGonagall stated with a twinkle in her eye.

Harry turned his face up towards the elephant. "Didn't want to come to Hogwarts?"

The elephant trumped his disapproval. "You could say that," replied McGonagall with a knowing smile.

"Well don't let go of the leash, I would hate for him to float away and go **POP!**" Harry said sarcastically. He then turned his attention up towards the elephant "See you later, Pinky!"

The other Gryffindors waited until McGonagall had disappeared into Hogwarts before turning on Harry.

"Dudley," he said simply interpreting their questioning silence. "Professor McGonagall was sent to retrieve my cousin from Smeltings this morning. Guess he wasn't too happy with the idea."

Suddenly a scream came from the area in which the Care of Magical Creatures was being held. "**RUN! RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! IT'S FREE!**"

"Isn't it time for Potions?" Harry asked as Snuffles started to drag him towards the safety of the school.

"You're right. Can't be late for Potions, can we?" Ron replied as they ran for safety.

~*~

Slowly, those Slytherins who had escaped Hagrid's class with minor injuries, hobbled into the Potion lab. "Well we can all see how much Gryffindor courage is worth," Draco snarled as he hugged his injured arm towards himself as his fellow housemates filed past him.

At Draco's comment, a number of the Gryffindors grasped their wands with spells on the tips of their tongues as they prepared to defend their honor. The Slytherins grinned knowing that if anything happened, it would be the Gryffindors who paid.

"Courage isn't just learning to face your fears, it's also know when to pull back when one is outmatched and outgunned," Harry said in a firm tone. "The difference between a courageous man and a fool is a courageous man face his fears and overcomes them. A fool faces an enemy when he is outmatched, outgunned and has nothing to gain by those action except to save his pride."

"What does that mean?" Crabbe dumbly asked as he scratched his head in confusion.

"Live today, fight tomorrow," Seamus added in a regal voice as he stared with contempt at the boy.

"Oh, he was cute!" Lavender shivered with pleasure.

"Absolutely yummy," Parvati drooled. "Especially with those dark eyes."

"Oh come on! That girl in the beginning. The one that kills herself. Now she was HOT!" Dean stated as he figured out what they were talking about.

"Students should be in their seats at the start of class," Professor Snape stated as he stormed into the room like a bat from hell. "Potter, due to your _condition,_ you will now be sitting separately from the other students."

A few Slytherins grinned with joy, as the Gryffindors glared with hate at their potion master and at the empty table in the Slytherin area of the room.

With a weary sigh, Harry allowed Snuffles to guide him to his new seat. "Ah, poor blind Potter all helpless and alone," Pansy cooed at Harry with an evil smirk on her face. "Better watch you back Potter. Oops, forgot you can't **_see_**."

Snape ignored the snide comments of his Slytherin. "Turn to page 740 and begin," he instructed his class. "I expect this potion to be done by the end of class." Snape's eyes never left Longbottom's face as the boy paled under the dreaded Potion Master's gaze.

As the class began to gather the necessary ingredients Snape made his way over to Harry. "Potter," Snape said as he glared with disdain at the black hound at the boy's feet. "Every Tuesday and Thursday you will report here after dinner for tutoring."

"Yes, sir," Potter replied in a dejected tone. "Sir… How?"

"How are you going to learn to make potions?" Snape said looking down his nose at the boy.

"Yes, sir." Harry said keeping his head down.

"One does not have to see to be able to make potion. You do have four other senses Potter. Make use of them," Snape sneered. With a quick incantation a number of potion ingredients appeared on the table in front of Harry. "For the remainder of this class, you will try to determine what each of these ingredients are, while I try to keep your fellow students from killing themselves or each other."

Snuffles snorted in disgust once Snape was away. "Yeah, I know, but he's right. I have to learn how to do this," Harry replied as he carefully reached out towards the table. 

His hand brushed against a pile of what appeared to those who could see as pine needles. He placed a pinch full of these small needles in the palm of his hand. "Small pieces, light weight," he mumbled to himself. "Sweet scent. Can't figure it out but I know it. Just can't remember."

After a few minutes of trying to figure out what it was, Harry mumbled with a sigh as he placed a few needles in his mouth, "Hope none of these are poisonous." After a brief moment's pause he said, "Rosemary," as soon as he tasted them.

Harry slowly proceeded through the piles of ingredients while Snuffles snarled at any Slytherin who even tried to come close to the table. 

"Last one," Harry sighed with relief just as Neville's cauldron exploded, covering himself in thick purple goop.

"Go to the hospital wing, Longbottom," Snape sighed in complete disgust and frustration.

Harry shook his head sadly as he picked up his last ingredients. "It won't be a potion class without Neville blowing up at least one cauldron per class," he explained to Snuffles.

"Right, lets figure this out," he mumbled as he turned his attention back to the task at hand. "Small twig with what feels like little claws on one end." Harry brought the item up to his nose and sneezed violently. "Clove," He sniffled. "Should have figured it from the claws. Aunt Petunia always like ham baked with clove."

"Have you figured it out yet, Potter?" Snape asked as he appeared behind the boy

Harry nodded his head before he began to point to each of the herbs in turn and naming them. Snape snorted in disdain as Snuffle looked up at Harry with pride. "Was it American ginger or Asian?" Snape snapped.

"I'm not sure, sir," Harry replied as he chewed on his bottom lip in though.

"You do realize that the location and condition in which a herb was raised and harvested under can affect what potion it's used in," Snape explained coldly. "I expect better, Potter." The Potions Master then turned and stormed away.

"I must have every one of them right," Harry whispered to Snuffles who licked him on the face as a reply.

"Bottle you potions, place them on the shelf, and then get out," Snape commanded as he swooped to the front of the class. "Potter, stay," Snape commanded icily as the class filed out of the room.

"We'll wait for you outside," Hermione whispered as she gave Harry's shoulder a squeeze in passing.

Harry could hear his professor pace back and forth in front of him as Snuffles leaned against his leg, his hackles raised.

"Do you remember that day when you portkeyed outside of Hogsmeade?" Snape asked as he came to a stop in front of Potter.

Harry's brow furrowed in confusion. "Yes, sir."

"And do you remember that song you sang all the way to the gates of Hogwarts?" Snape growled slightly.

"Yes," Harry said hesitate.

"That. Was. My. Favorite. Muggle. Movie." The Potion master emphasized as he lean in towards the boy. "And now all I can hear when I think of that movie is that stupid song of yours."

Harry bit his lips to keep from smiling as Snuffles made an interesting chuckling laughter. "Sorry, sir."

"Oh you will be Potter. You will be very sorry because I came up with the perfect revenge," Snape said in a sickly sweet voice, which drained the blood from Harry's face and sent Snuffles into the defensive crouch.

Suddenly Snape began to sing.

"_It's a small world after all. It's a small world after all. It's a small world after all. It's a small small world."_

"**NOOOOOO!**" echoed down the halls of Hogwarts.

~*~

"It has to be. It's too damn smart. Too human like," Lee Jordan stated as he chewed on the end of his quill.

"No it couldn't be," Angelina Johnson argued as she yanked her long hair back into a ponytail. "Dumbledore would never allow it. It's just a smart mutt!"

In frustration, Lee threw his quill down. "Fine, if Harry's dog isn't an Animagus…. Than maybe it's a Magusimal, a Magus Breed."

"A what?" Colin spoke up from where he had been sitting listening to the older Gryffindor argues about Harry's seeing eye dog.

"You know, a Magus Breed." Angelina commented as she finished tying her hair back.

A number of students who had been following the conversation looked at their elders in confusion. Just then the trio and dog trudged in from their last class.

"Harry! Hey Harry, come over here!" Katie Ball shouted across the common room.

Carefully, Snuffles lead Harry around the obstacle course that was the Common Room. "Hi, what's going on?"

"We're arguing about what exactly Snuffles is." Angelina said in her sweetest voice, which everyone knew meant trouble.

Harry raised an eyebrow at her wording. "What you mean, what is he? He's a dog."

"The great debate is if Snuffles is an Animagus, a Magusimal or just a smart mutt." Lee said before Angelina could open her mouth, earning himself a dirty look from the girl.

"What's a Magusimal?" Ron asked 

"When a Magusimal is….. Ummm…." Lee's face started to turn red, starting at the tips of his ears and spreading downwards. "When an Animagus goes out in the world and… they meet a…." 

"They do the wild thing with a real animal," Angelina said in frustration as Lee stuttered around the subject.

"Eeee. That's gross!" A number of students grimaced.

"Yep! I agree," Angelina agreed with a smirk. "You have to wonder about what type of wizard would… Umm… Do it with an animal."

"So a Magusimal is an offspring of that pair." Harry stated.

"Ron? Are you ok?" Jordan asked as he saw how pale the red head had become.

"Missy." Ron whispered in shock.

"Missy?" Hermione repeated as she looked back and forth between the pale faces of Ron and the twins.

"She was a girl rat…" Fred said in a numb shock.

"…For Scabbers." George finished Fred's sentence.

Harry and Hermione grimace at the thought, while Snuffles covered his eyes with his paws and whimpered.

"What's wrong with that?" Lee asked hesitantly, half dreading the answer they would get judging from the appearances on his friends' faces.


	6. Cry For Me

Disclaimer: We all know I don't own Harry Potter. If I owned anyone I would own Sirius Black. I wouldn't be begging and praying for a job either.

Bad Author Notes: Blame Draco for the rating change. (Horny bastard) My life is in the toilet right now so any update in the near future is questionable. I will update but no clue when.

Cry For Me

By Lady FoxFire

March 14, 2003

"_It's a small world…._ **ARGH! DAMN THAT MAN TO... TO... TO ETERNITY WITH A CLASSROOM FULL OF NEVILLES!**" Harry's frustrated curse echoed down the dark deserted hallways of the dungeon. 

A sneeze in agreement came from the huge black hound acting as the boy's guide dog.

" Snuffles, we need to think up a form of revenge. Yes, that man will pay for what he's done to us!" Harry hissed evilly. "He will pay dearly for that… that cursed song!" 

Without warning, Snuffles suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, all through of revenge vanished as Harry reached down and felt the hackles rise on the hound's back. "What is it? What's wrong?" Harry asked anxiously, standing still to listen for what caused Snuffles to stop, only to hear absolutely nothing.

A low menacing growl rumbled from deep within Snuffle's throat. The dog bared his large, sharp white fangs as his body tensed, ready for a fight. His eyes remained locked on something or someone in the deep shadows of the dungeon.

Without warning, loops of metallic wire connected to a long metal pole, which appeared and encircled Snuffles's neck, tightening around his throat. "**SNUFFLES!**" Harry called out in a blind panic as he felt his godfather being torn away from his hands. 

Silence was his only replied as Harry knelt down and groped for his godfather. "Snuffles?" Harry called out softly, his fear evidence in his voice.

"I won't worry about that stupid mutt if I was you, Potter," a voice hissed menacingly from behind Harry.

"Draco," Harry growled as he straightened from his crouched position and slowly turned towards the voice. "What have you done with my dog?"

"The mangy mutt? Crabbe and Goyle are _entertaining_ it," Draco explained in a cocky tone dripping with sarcasm as he silently circled Harry like a shark with its kill.

"If they hurt Snuffles in anyway, I'll make sure you'll pay for it, Malfoy," Harry snarled in response as he tried to follow Draco's voice.

Draco laughed cruelly at Potter's threat. "You are **pitiful**, Potter," Draco jeered mockingly as he suddenly appeared in front of Harry.

Harry's hand shot out to where the voice came from. Only to have his fingers brushed against the fabric of Malfoy's robe as the boy disappeared, blending into that void of silence which continued to engulf Harry once again.

"Tell me, Potter, what can a blind wizard do against me?" Draco's taunted from behind and to the left of Harry. "Or what about You-Know-Who, Harry?" he asked from in front of Harry. "How will you defeat the most powerful wizard even when _you **can't** even see him_?"

"I'll find a way," Harry replied with defiance, his teeth bared in a snarl as he listens for any sound from his godfather or from one of the Slytherin boys.

"I won't be so sure of that, Potter," Draco whispered venomously in Harry's ear before stepping out of the boys' reach.

Harry stood in silence as he tried in vain to locate Draco, who was circling his helpless victim. 

"You are so beautiful," Malfoy whispered breathlessly as his eyes wondered up and down the body of his rival.

"Sod off, Malfoy," Harry snapped angrily as he took a few steps away from the voice. "I'm tired of your sick games."

"**Games! Games!**" Draco snapped as he grabbed Harry and spun him into the wall, forcing Harry's chest against the cold damp stones of the dungeon. "Do you think this is a _game_?" Draco snarled as he pressed his body against Harry's, pinning the smaller boy to the wall. 

Harry immediately tried to get away, his hands pressing against the wall to lever himself away. With ease Malfoy grabbed Harry's hands; trapped them with one of his own and held them above his head. "Don't you get it, Harry?" Draco snarled fiercely as he used his free hand to grasp Potter by the hair and pull his head back exposing his neck. "You're even **less** than a Muggle. YOU ARE **NOTHING**."

"Tell me, Potter, do you believe all those pretty little lies that Dumbledork is whispering in your ears? How they'll teach you to use your magic without seeing? How they figure out a way to defeat the Dark Lord?" Malfoy whispered into Harry's ear. "They're all lies, Harry. **All lies**. The only use for a blind wizard is as a whore." Draco ran his lips up Harry's neck as Potter struggled against him. "You'll make a pretty whore, Harry. Eagerly wanting to please your master."

"I'm no one's **whore**," Harry snarled angrily as he tried to kick Malfoy in the shin. "Dumbledore isn't lying to me. I'll learn to use my magic without my sight. I will defeat Voldemort."

Malfoy ignored Harry's words as he applied more of his weight against the smaller boy. "Tell me, Potter. Do you expect death when the Dark Lord finally get his hands on you? A quick death or a slow lingering death?" Draco purred into Harry's ear. "I know the truth. I know he has bigger plans for you. First, the Dark Lord will bind your magic to him and then he'll use it against your friends. He's going to use you to win this bothersome little war." Draco purred into Harry's ear.

"No," Harry snarl as he renewed his fight against his captor.

"Oh **yes**, Harry. You're going to help Voldemort become ruler of the world. You're going to help him destroy those filthy Mudbloods and the stinking Muggles. Then everyone will bow to the Dark Lord and his followers. And when he's done with them, he'll turn his attention to you."

"I can image you'll cry and scream when he takes you the first time. You'll beg him to stop. So beautiful. You'll look so beautiful with tears in your eyes." Draco groaned as ground his hips into Harry's backside. "But soon he'll teach you to want him. You'll learn to beg for him to bend you over and to be fucked by him. You'll beg him to allow you to take him into you mouth, to suck him until he comes." Draco whispered as his tongue licked the edges of Harry's ear. "And when he's tired of you, maybe he'll give you to his faithful Death Eaters."

Harry shook his head. "No," he whispered.

"Maybe he'll give you to me," Draco whispers as he let go of Harry's hair and allowed his hand to wonder down his captive's body. "I'll teach you about the pleasure of pain. I'll teach you to lick your blood from my whips. I'll chain you down on silk sheets and fuck you raw until you bleed. You'll come to love sucking me off until I come in your mouth."

"And I'll bite it off before I let you touch me." Harry snarled as he tried to slam the back of his head into Draco's nose only to miss as the boy moved aside at the last minute. "I'll kill myself before I let any of you maggots touch me."

"I'll be sure to warn your Master about that," Draco said smugly. "I won't want the Dark Lord to lose his new toy."

Harry pushed away from the wall, swinging his fist. It didn't connect with anything, and the momentum pushed him off balance before he could correct himself. He landed hard on his hands and knees against the cold unyielding stone floor.

Draco stood over Harry then moved quickly away. "It won't be long until you're always in that position, Potter," Draco remarks snidely as he memorized the position of the cowering boy. "Crabbe! Goyle!" With the swish of his robe, Draco gradually slipped from the room, his footsteps echoing loudly on the stone floor, with Crabbe and Goyle following at his heals.

After they left, Harry mustered all of his remaining energy and crawled to where Snuffles lay whimpering, to examine the damage. "Snuffles," Harry whispered softly as he carefully touched the dog, feeling his blood soaked fur. "I'm so sorry, Snuffles. It's all my fault."

Tears began to run down Harry's face as he tried in vain to comfort his godfather. "I'm so sorry."

~*~

The flickering torches that shone with an eerie emerald flame threw hideous shadows across the ancient stone room from their brackets in the castle walls. The dancing shadows turned the masked Death Eaters into the monsters from a child's nightmare.

They circled to watch the gaunt figure of a lone Death Eater kneeling on one knee in front of his Master. Voldemort sat in silence, studying the Death Eater at his feet. With the fluid grace of a serpent the Dark Lord rose from his throne and began to circle the Death Eater.

"Severus," Voldemort drew out his spy's name in a long hiss. "I am not happy with you, my child. I hear of Potter's blindness from other sources. I hear of you singing a Muggle song to comfort my enemy. I have began to doubt your loyalty towards me"

"I am as loyal to you my Master as the day you granted me the privilege to bare you mark," Snape said silkily, as his head remained bowed in submission. "All I do is for you, my Lord."

"You sang a Muggle children's song for me?" The loathing was more than evidence in Voldemort's voice as his lip-less mouth curl back in disgust. "Explain."

"I hope to win Potter's confidence and trust, Master. Once I have done so, I will be able to bring the boy to you at your command," Snape explain as he dared to raise his eyes to look at his Lord. "But my plans may have been ruined thanks to Malfoy's demon spawn."

Voldemort's eyes flicker over to where Lucius stood with the other Death Eater. "And how could young Draco ruin your plans, my spy?"

"Last night after a private potion lesson, Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle attacked Potter and the guide dog that Dumbledore has supplied the child. Potter finally confided in Dumbledore that Malfoy told Potter what to expect in the near future."

Voldemort glanced over at the parents of the children, whose robes suddenly wafted as they stepped back, shuffled their feet. Silently Malfoy pulled out the portkey he had hidden in his robes for this type of situation while Goyle and Crabbe looked at each other in confusion. "And what did the young dragon tell Potter?"

Snape licked his lips nervously. "Potter was told that you would capture him and turn him into your… into your personal whore, sire."

Voldemort's snake like nostrils flared at his spy's words. "And what else did he say?" The Dark Lord asked as he sat back onto his throne, his eyes narrowing as he waited his servants.

"From what Dumbledore was able to get out of the boy, young Malfoy had promised that you, my Lord, would bind the child's magic to yourself and use it to take over the world of Magic and Muggle. After that, you would take Potter into your consort and eventually grant your loyal followers the right to use the boy when you grow tired of him."

He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named sat in contemplative silence as the turned the words from his questionable Potion Master over in his mind. 

"_Master,_ _I thought you wanted to kill this young snake-ling?_" Nagini hissed to as she slithered her way around her master's feet, her head resting on his knee.

"_I do,_" Voldemort hissed in returned as he reached out and stoked his familiar's head. "_But young Malfoy's idea has merit. Except for one thing._"

The snake' tongue flicker out, tasting the feeling of her master. "_And what is that Master?_"

"_I do not share._" Voldemort turned his attention back to his followers. "Young Malfoy is very wise to foresee so much of my plans and very foolish to tell our enemies of it. His words make me wonder were his loyalty lies…"

"My son is loyal to you, my Lord," the Elder Malfoy said as he suddenly stepped from the ranks of Death Eater. "He is young and foolish at times, but only wishes to serve you."

"_Voluptas_," Malfoy's eyes rolled up into his head as he crashed heavily to his knees. His mouth opened but instead of a scream of pain a moan of pleasure escaped his lips.

"Pain is something one may learn mastery over or ignore, but pleasure… Pleasure is a beast of itself," The Dark Lord said as he watched Lucius claw at his own flesh, moaning in pleasure and in pain. "One can not ignore pleasure nor will it away. It will crawl into your soul until it twists and warps it until pleasure itself become pain. A pain you cannot live without." With a quick flick of his wrist, Voldemort ended Malfoy's punishment.

"Master," Malfoy begged as he crawled towards the Dark Lord on his belly.

"Do not interrupt me again, Lucius," Voldemort snarled angrily at the sniveling man. "Next time I will not be as forgiving. Now get back to you place."

Snape watched his fellow Death Eater crawl back to his place among the other, who shied away from him as if diseased. "Severus," Snape's head snapped back to his master as Voldemort continued to speak. "I want you to do whatever is necessary for you to bring me the boy, unharmed and unspoiled. Do what you must, but do not betray your position within Dumbledore's circle."

The Potion Master licked his lips. "It will be as you command, my Lord but it will take time. I must move slowly so I will not to arouse suspension. Dumbledore will be wary of betrayal from within the school, now."

Voldemort waved his hand to dismiss this concern. "Do what you will, my spy, just bring me Potter." He waved to dismiss Snape.

"As you command it, my Lord," Snape said, as he bowed, backing away from his Master.

"Oh, Severus." Voldemort's words stopped the man's retreat. "I expect you to deal with those children."

~*~

The fifth year Gryffindor boy's dormitory hadn't changed much over the past one hundred years. The number of boys may vary from year to year. The posters on the wall differed with each generation. Yet it was still heated with the same old cast iron pot bell stove that had been installed over a hundred and fifty years ago. The school still used the same heavy red fabric to make curtains for the four-poster beds.

The curtains of one such bed were closed tight around one of the beds. "Harry?" Remus called out quietly from the door. "May I come in?" He waited for an answer but silence was his only reply. With a sigh, Lupin stepped into the room and pulled the door shut behind him.

"Harry?" He prompted softly, walking over to Harry's bed.

"Go away professor," Harry called out in a dejected voice from behind the heavy curtains.

"You know I can't do that." Remus answered yanking back the curtains. Harry lay on the bed, his back toward Remus "You didn't come down for dinner." He sat on the bed.

"Wasn't hungry. How's Sirius?" Harry asked changing the subject, his back still facing Remus.

Remus ran his hand through his greying hair in frustration. "He's going to be fine, Harry. Poppy is going to release him later tonight." Harry slowly nodded his head. Remus sat patiently waiting for Harry to talk.

"It's my fault," Harry said finally

"What is?" the confusion Remus felt was evidence in his voice.

"Sirius." Harry sat up in his bed. "It's my fault he was hurt," He explained miserably, hugging his knees towards his chest

"Harry, it wasn't your fault," Remus said stressing each word.

"Yes it is," Harry snapped, hitting the mattress with his fist. "I shouldn't have just stood there. I should had just done something."

"And what could you have done? You haven't even started to be retrained yet. Think about it, Harry. What would have happened if you had?" Remus said. "You could have hurt someone. Maybe even killed someone. You did the only thing you could have. You kept your head."

"That didn't help Sirius any."

Remus scooted back on the bed until he was sitting next to the boy. "No, but that's our fault." He explained as he wrapped an arm around the troubled youth. "We knew Sirius would be able to protect you from danger from outside of the school but we never thought of danger from within; we never thought of the students."

Harry's shoulders sagged. "So what happens now?"

Remus sighed as he squeezed the boy's should as he tried to reassure him. "To begin with, Dumbledore is setting up wards around you and Sirius. This way, the teachers will know exactly where you are and if you're in any danger."

Harry was quiet for a moment, and then prompted in an innocent voice, "So in other words they'll know every time I hit the loo."

Remus sat in stun silence for a moment. "That's an image I could have done without," he replied, his face scrunched up at the thought

"I bet Snape is loving the idea. He'll know where I am and what I'm doing at any time of night or day." Harry muttered more to himself than to his professor. "He would love to use the wards to assign me detention or to take points from Gryffindor."

"I won't doubt that." Remus said thoughtful. "But I'm willing to say that Dumbledore has it set up to only go off when you are in danger. I doubt any of the other professors would like to know where you are every second of the day."

Harry sighed deeply as he leaned his head against Remus. "What about Draco and his cronies?" Remus was silent. "Nothing's going to happen to them, is it?" Harry finally asked.

Remus shook his head. "No. A number of Slytherin are claiming that Malfoy was in their common room the time of the attack."

"And Crabbe and Goyle?" Harry said with a small trace of hope in this voice.

"We can't prove that they were there. You never heard them." Remus admitted. "We know they were there, Harry but they only way to prove it would endanger Sirius."

Harry sighed. "I know. I just wish…"

"I know, Harry. I know." Remus answered as he pulled the young boy close to him, trying to comfort the youth.

~*~

"Fi il talateen-arbaa sana, il masikh arada yi-oom tehnee." Dumbledore read to himself from the gigantic black book that floated in front of him as he closed the office door behind him. The Headmaster looked up from the book, "I wonder…"

With the easy and grace of a younger man the headmaster climbed up the ladder of his bookcase and started to sort through his massive collection of rare books. "Book of Amun Ra. The Waking of the Wahid. Hom-dai. Ah, here it is," Dumbledore mumbled to himself as he plucked a thin green leather bound book from it's place on the shelf.

Stepping off the bottom rung, the Headmaster continued to talk to himself. "Yes. Yes. The answer should be here."

"And what answer would that be Albus?" a voice called out from the Headmaster's favorite chair by the fire.

Dumbledore continued to look through the book he had found. "It is customary for one to knock, Minister."

Cornelius Fudge shrugged at the Headmaster's comment. "I did but you weren't in, so I let myself in."

The Headmaster's eyes narrowed at Fudge's comment, "Then you should have joined us for dinner," he replied as he tried to keep the anger from his voice.

Cornelius shrugged in disinterest as he stood up from the chair. "What are you working on, Headmaster?" The Minister asked as he tried to read the book upside down

"An ancient prophecy," Dumbledore stated as he slammed the book shut. "Now Cornelius, what brings you to Hogwarts at such a late hour?"

"News of Potter's unfortunate accident, of course." Fudge said with a callous shrug.

"Accident?" Dumbledore inquired as he looked at Fudge with a curiously look.

"Why, his lost of sight." Fudge commented as he read over papers that the Headmaster had on his desk. "What a tragic accident for the poor child. He had such potential."

"What happened to Harry was no accident!" Dumbledore roared in outrage at the way Fudge dismissed casually what had happen to the boy. "Vernon Dursley deliberately blinded the child and then withheld medical attention from him."

Fudge sputtered in shock. "I hardly believe that! Mr. Dursley is a well-respected businessman. I truly doubt he's capably of such a horrific act."

"His own wife confirmed Harry's statement." Dumbledore stated as he glared at the Minister

Fudge walked to one end of the room and back again, deep in thought. "Was she there when Mr. Dursley allegedly damaged Potter's sight?" he asked curiously, his head bowed in thought.

The Headmaster's brow furrowed at Fudge's question. "No, but she—"

The Minister's head jerk up at Dumbledore's words. "Ah. So we have the word of a child with obvious mental problems and probably drug user, along with the word of a distressed older woman, who is undoubtedly being replaced by a younger woman. Both of them against the word of a well respected member of the Muggle community with no history abuse," Fudge stated with confidence of a born politician as he shook his finger at Dumbledore.

Dumbledore could only stared at the Minister of Magic in shock.

"Anyway, how Mr. Potter lost his sight isn't important. Right now I need to escort they young boy back to his guardians, after all Hogwarts is to place for a child such as he." Fudge stated tersely straightening his vest with self-importance.

"Hogwarts is a place for children, Cornelius. All children!" Dumbledore cried in outrage

"Yes. Yes. Of course, but the Potter child… he doesn't really belong here. Not now," Fudge didn't notice Dumbledore's look of hate and disgust directed at him as he continues. "That's why I'll be taking him back to his aunt's and uncle's home. I really need to explain about to them Le sang de Magie."

Dumbledore blinked in surprise at Fudge's statement. "Actually, Cornelius, Harry will not be leaving Hogwarts until he chooses to." Dumbledore countered, pulling a parchment out of his desk and handing it to the Minister.

"What is this?" Fudge asked in confusion as the accepted the paper from the Headmaster. His jaw drops as he read the document. "This... this... This document is invalid. It needs both Mrs. and Mr. Dursley's signature." He growled as he flung the paper to the desk.

A smug look appeared on Dumbledore's face. "But that's is were you're wrong, Minister. Petunia Dursley was listed as Harry's guardian, Mr. Dursley never was," he explained as he picked up the document and handed it back to Fudge. "And with this document I am now Potter's legal guardian."

Fudge began to shake with anger as his face turned bright red. "That boy should not remain at Hogwarts. He is placing the other students in danger."

"The boy is of no danger to his fellow students nor to himself." Dumbledore countered calmly. "It is our hope that with training, he will be able to use his magic once again."

"Fine," Fudge spattered with malice. "Potter can stay until his new… family has been decided."

Dumbledore's eyes narrowed, the muscles in his neck tighten. "As Potter's guardian, I do not agree with Le sang de Magie," Dumbledore stated through his clutched teeth.

"And as Minister of Magic, I will do what is necessary to protect the wizard community." The Minister of Magic growled as he tried to intimate the Headmaster. "Potter's name and information will be listed in The Daily Prophet tomorrow. I expect that a number of pure blood families would be willing to part with a tidy sum from that boy."

"I will not have my ward auctioned off like cattle, Cornelius!" the Headmaster growled as he leaned forward on his desk.

"You have no choice in the matter, Albus. Good day!" Fudge turned his back on the Headmaster and stormed out of the office.

As the last of the echo from Fudge slamming the door faded, Dumbledore collapsed into his chair. "Blast that idiotic man! How did he ever become Minister?"

The Headmaster sat in silence, deep in thought before a grin slowly crept onto his wrinkled features. Quickly Albus made his way to his fire and threw in a pinch of blue powder. "Arthur Weasley…."

~*~

Translation:

Fi il talateen-arbaa sana, il masikh arada yi-oom tehnee. - (Arabic) In the 34th year, the Creature will rise again. 

Le sang de Magie - (French) blood of magic

Voluptas - (Latin) pleasure 


	7. Grim Prophet

Disclaimer: Yet once again we are here to hear my tale of the life of one Harry J Potter. But if I was really talented I would have invented Harry. But then again it probably won't have been a kids book **smirk** Oh well Book 5 is finally coming out. New fics will be created and I still won't make one dollar off of all my hard work. Well I do get paid but only in reviews and people screaming at my on why I'm so mean to Harry. Ok I'm babbling, so one with the fic.

Bad Author Notes: This is the chapter that never ends. It goes on and on my friend. Some people started writing it, not knowing what it was. And they'll continue writing it forever JUST because....

Grim Prophet

by Lady FoxFire

June 1, 2003

"Harry," a voice hissed into Harry's ear as someone gently stroked the side of his face. " My perfect tool. **My** pretty little pet."

Harry snapped open his eyes, only to meet the infinite darkness that was his constant companion. The soft mattress cradled Harry's slim frame as he felt the heavy weight of another man pressing into him. "So beautiful." The man kept caressing his face, nuzzling his neck.

"Stop!" Harry cried out as he tried to escape the man, to escape the voice. " Please stop."

Fingertips gently but firmly caressed Harry's face and neck before slipping down to where his shirt was tucked into his pants. Slowly the hand pulled Harry's shirt out and slipped under the rough material of Dudley's old shirt across the flesh underneath.

"No!" Harry begged as he tried to push the man away. "Stop please!"

"Mine," the voice hissed venomously with pleasure once again as Harry struggled. "Without you, my pet, I would not have won this war."

"No!" Tears ran down Harry's face as fought to escape the voice, to escape Voldemort. "You're lying!"

"Oh yes, Harry. Yes. You won the war— just as it was foretold." Voldemort rubbed his scaly face against Harry's as the voice whispered in Harry's ear. "And now it is time for me to collect my prize." Voldemort leaned into Harry, placing more of his weight on the slight boy.

"No!" Harry cried in despair as he tried in vain to push Voldemort off of him, as he tried to escape.

Voldemort hissed with menacing laughter at the sight of the boy's futile attempts to break away. He effortlessly captured Harry's hands as the boy writhed hopelessly with one of his own and pinned them down above Harry's head. "It is a shame you could not watch your friends gasp their last breath of life. It's a shame that you could not watch the death of your Godfather and his pet werewolf," Voldemort cooed gently into Potter's ear.

"Sirius?" Harry stopped his struggle. "He's dead?" he whispered in disbelief.

"One of Severus' more ingenues plans. Deny the werewolf his Wolfsbane on full moon lock the beast in the cage with your Godfather." Voldemort explain as he nuzzled Harry's neck. "Of course your Godfather was wearing a collar so he could not transform but I was kind, I did give him a silver dagger. It was interesting to watch—to see who would live and who would die."

Gleaming tears of anguish began to fall down Harry's pale cheek as he listen to the Dark Lord described with chilling detail the fate of his Godfather. Lovingly Voldemort kissed each of Harry's tears away.

"He wouldn't use the dagger," Voldemort said a trace of irritation and confusion in his serpentine voice. "He just smiled wistfully at the beast before it tore him to shreds. And in the morning the werewolf used the knife on himself."

Harry's body shook with grief as Voldemort held him close, caressing the young boy's body. "You're all alone now, Harry," Voldemort whispered into his hair. "Dumbledore is gone. The Mudblood is gone. And the Weasleys… are no more. Except for the girl. I've given her to my spy. It would have been a shame to lose their bloodline. And Snape always did favor the little red head."

"And now to claim what is mine," he said as he unsnapped Harry's pants. "Harry, Harry, Harry… wake up, Harry! Wake up!"

"**NO! GET AWAY FROM ME**," Harry screamed as he thrashed around in bed.

Sirius grasped Harry's by the arms as the boy fought against him. "Harry, wake up! It's only a dream!"

"Sirius?" Harry gasped frantically as his glazed unseeing eyes opened wide, and his body tensed waiting for the trap to be sprung.

"It's me, Harry." Sirius held Harry's hand and placed it on the side of his face. "It's me, Harry. It's Sirius."

"Sirius?" Harry's fingertips danced lightly over Sirius's face, mapping his features. "Sirius!" Harry cried in relief as he threw himself into the older man's arm and began to cry.

"Shhhh. It's alright Harry," Sirius whispered into the boy's hair as he rocked the weeping child, soothing the sobs that racked the sinewy figure. "It was just a dream. Only a dream…"

~*~

"Enter," Snape commanded distractedly as he continued to grade the essay in front of him.

Draco strode into the office with the pride and arrogance only a Malfoy could carry, with Crabbe and Goyle trailing being him like two trained guard dogs. The boys halted in front of Snape's desk and waited patiently for their Head of House to acknowledge them.

Snape finished marking the essay and laid it aside before reaching for another, never once acknowledging the presence of the three boys before him.

After being ignored for several minutes, Malfoy began to tap his foot impatiently, his patience running out with his professor. "You wanted to see us, Professor?" the silver haired boy drawled with biting impatience. Without sparing a glance up, Snape drew a thin red line through a paragraph on the parchment and wrote a short note next to it. The Potion's Master continued to ignore them. Draco crossed his arm across his chest; his eyes narrow at the insult of being so completely disregarded. "Professor!" he snapped.

"Do you know why you have been summoned?" Snape asked as he continued to grade the papers, never once lifting his head to look at the boys.

Draco brushed some imaginary lint from his robe as Crabbe and Goyle stood silently behind him. "I am assuming that it has to do with someone who impersonated me and attacked Potter."

Snape carefully laid his quill down on the desk and closed the lid to the bottle of red ink. "That is partially correct, Mr. Malfoy," Snape commented apathetically as he raised his eyes to the boys in front of him. His cold eyes studied each one of them as if they were interesting specimens for dissection.

"And how is my assumption in error, Professor?" Draco asked condescendingly as he looked down at his professor.

"You are here to learn of your punishment **for** assaulting on Potter and his mutt," Snape stated sharply in a cold starn tone.

Draco's nostrils flared angrily as he threw his shoulders back, and held his head high. "My father won't stand for this! I have witnesses that will state that I was in the _common room_ when that fool Potter was _allegedly_ attacked. I'll see Dumbledore is removed from the school for this slander of the Malfoy name!"

Snape sat in silence through Draco's rant, his lips curling back in a malicious sneering grin. "You presume too much once again, Malfoy. Your father already knows of your punishment and there is nothing he can do for you, boy. Dumbledore didn't order your punishment. The fool actually believes that you're innocent of the crime. This order comes from someone much more powerful than that old man."

Draco's confusion soon vanished as he realized of whom the Potion Master was speaking. He swallowed nervously as he unconsciously took a step back in fear, bumping into Goyle who looked on with a vacant expression forever plastered on his huge, frying pan-sized face.

"Yes," Snape hissed venomously as he planted his hands firmly on his desk and arose like a vengeful demon from Hell. "He is far from pleased by your **childish** prank. Your imbecilic, asinine assault on Potter has sent our plans back by months!"

Snape walked around the desk. "He is also _displeased_ that you informed Potter of our plans. Plans that you undoubtedly learned from your father."

"No." Draco shook his head in panic. "Father didn't tell me anything. I made it all up. I didn't know anything."

"I don't believe you," Snape hissed inches from the boy's face, his voice dripping with malice. "You're not smart enough to conjure such a brilliant plan." Snape stared down at the quivering boy. "You undoubtedly overheard your father speaking of it. Hopefully, your father has learned to keep his mouth shut after his latest punishment. I'm sure he doesn't want to have the Dark Lord repeat it. Now the only question remaining is how should you be dealt with."

Goyle blinked his piggy little eyes. "Umm. Detention with Filch?" he suggested stupidly.

"I would hardly think that is the type of punishment that the our Lord had intended." Snape retorted menacingly as he looked down his long, hooked nose at the boys. "Perhaps I'll have you perform those acts you so lovely described to Potter." Snape said as he reached out and gently played with a lock of Draco's hair. "Do you think that is a good enough punishment?" 

Draco stood still, his breath coming out in short, panic filled pants. His eyes grew wide as he struggled to control the inexorable fear that clung firmly to his heart. He stared helplessly up at the ominous, looming figure of his professor.

Snape's hand dropped suddenly from beside Malfoy's face. "You should consider yourself lucky that I do not share the same taste in men and children as some others." Snape turned his back on the boys and walked back to his desk. 

"As for your punishment," continued Snape as he sat once again behind his desk. "For a time I thought of handing you over to your fellow Slytherins. However, I am afraid they will be too lenient with you. But I do believe I have come up with a better idea," Snape said as his mouth twisted up into an evil smile.

~*~

"This will never work," Seamus grumbled as he stared at the trap door that led to Trelawney's classroom.

"It **will** work Seamus," Ron said with a sigh, his arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the wall next to Harry and Snuffles, who were sitting on the floor. 

Seamus looked up over at Ron then back to the trap door. "Yeah but are you sure?"

The boys groaned at the comment. "Drop it, Seamus before you jinx us all," Neville barked from where he stood guarding the stairs.

"Yeah but what if one of the teachers notices we're missing?" Seamus asked as he started to pace. "What if Snape notices and then figures out what we did?"

"I doubt Snape would do anything even **if** he figures out that we pulled the prank," Harry stated as he ran his fingers through Snuffle's fur, "He hates Trelawney just as much as we do. Anyway, you're forgetting that Hermione and Dean are using glamour charms so it seems like we're at breakfast."

"Fine, fine. But how are we going to get him up there?" Seamus asked pointing at Snuffles. "_Magic?_"

"We are wizards," Neville said rolling his eyes.

"We can't use magic." Ron sighed as he pushed himself from the wall. "One of the previous Divination professors had the tower warded because students were stealing some of the plants he was using to _unfog _the future."

A snort came from Harry. "In other words they were stealing the plants he was using to get stoned on."

"Exactly," Ron continued, sounding exactly like Hermione. "He had a ward placed on the tower that identified each spell use and who did it within the tower so he could catch the thief or thieves."

The boys and the dog looked at Ron questionably. Ron shrugged, "Hermione told me. So we can't use magic."

"So that's why Neville and me are along, _manual labor_," Seamus said huffily and crossed his arms, glaring at Ron and Harry.

"No. You're back up manual labor," Harry said with a smirk. "Anyway, you **wanted** in on the prank."

Seamus and Neville shared a looked between each other before looking back at Ron and Harry. "Okay," Neville said wearily, "so how are we getting Snuffles up there? He has to weigh at least thirteen stones."

As if summoned by Neville's question, a house elf wearing lime green tea cozies and a maroon jumper with a gold letter R on it, suddenly appeared in front of Harry. "Does Mr. Harry Potter, sir, need Dobby's help?" the little house elf asked as he looked upon his hero with big soulful green eyes.

Seamus and Neville looked down at the little house elf then up at Ron who just nodded his head and grinned like a mad man.

"Thanks for coming, Dobby," Harry smiled in the direction of Dobby's voice. 

"It is not problem Mr. Harry Potter, sir." Dobby bubbled over with joy. "Dobby loves to help Harry Potter, sir."

Harry smiled and nodded his head. "We need your help, Dobby. We need to… Umm… Well you see…"

Ron smiled and shook his head at Harry. "Dobby, we need to get Snuffles into the classroom." Ron pointed at the trap door. "Can you help us?"

Dobby looked at the Gryffindor boys, then at Snuffles and finally at the trap door warily. "Why does Harry Potter's Wheezy want Harry Potter's Snuffles in a classroom? Mr. Harry Potter's Snuffles is to guide and protect Mr. Harry Potter, not to sit in a room."

Ron's shuffled his feet under Dobby's intense gaze. 

"Dobby, you know about the things Professor Trelawney says about Harry?" Neville asked as he walked over to the little house elf. "She tells him how he's going to die a horrible death. That he's going to fall of his broom and break his neck or how one of his loved one will cut his heart out. The lies she tells gets everyone real upset, so we thought to play a small prank on her." 

Dobby looked at Snuffles for a moment then at the trap door. Slowly an evil grin appeared on the house elf's face turning the innocently looking being into something truly frightening. "Dobby likes to help."

"Remind me never to piss off a house elf," Seamus whispered to Neville with a shiver. Neville just nodded his head and swallowed nervously as he stared at the grinning elf.

Just then the sound of someone running could be heard. All eyes turned towards the sound, as it grew closer. 

"Shit! We're dead," Seamus mumbled.

Ginny rounded the corner at a run and sprinted up the stairs. She collapsed breathlessly next to Harry, thrusting an item into his hands. "From… Moony… He's… Keeping… Trelaw… Busy…" Ginny said as she gasped for air. "Got to get back. Want to watch later."

The boys bemusedly watched Ginny disappear down the stairs. "What just happened?" Seamus asked, his brow furrow in confusion.

"And who is Moony?" Neville asked as he turned to Ron and Harry.

"We'll explain later. First, I want to know something," Harry announced, holding up the brass square in the palm of his hand, "what is this?"

"Oh Moony, I think I love you," Ron said with a huge grin on his face and he took it from Harry.

"I'm sure he'll love to know that, but what is it?" Harry said as he climbed to his feet with Snuffles at his side.

"It's a recorder!" Neville said, the awe evident in his voice.

"A what?" Harry said in confusion

"It's a wizard camcorder. But when you view the recording you can move around so you can see everything, even the stuff behind the recorder," Seamus explain bouncing up and down like a kid in a toy store.

"You mean it's like a pensieve?" Harry asked cautiously

"No. You don't go into a memory it's just a recording of an event but it's more like a computer game in which you can look all around you by using a mouse." Seamus explained

"What's a computer?" Neville asked

"And how can mice help you with it?" Ron asked

Harry shook his head in amusement. "Prank first, Muggle technology later." Harry knelt down and reached out towards where he thought Dobby was. 

Gentle Dobby took Harry's hand and placed it on his shoulder. "Mr. Harry Potter needs Dobby to help Harry Potter's Snuffles into classroom?"

"Yes, Dobby. We do need your help but I don't want you to get into any trouble," Harry said, giving his friend a gentle squeeze.

"Don't worry, Mr. Harry Potter, sir. Dobby's magic no show up on wards," Dobby said patting Harry's hand, trying to reassure the young wizard. "But Dobby was wondering…"

"What is Dobby?" Ron asked seeing the house elf blush.

"Will Mr. Harry Potter, sir, show house elves copy of prank?" Dobby ducked his head nervously. "House elves no like Trelawney. Would like to see what happens."

"It's a deal, Dobby," Harry replied with a smile. "But we better hurry. It's almost time for class."

Dobby nodded his head and snapped his fingers, the trapdoor swung open. The House Elf then turns to Snuffles. "Snuffles, no move," Dobby command. Before the dog could move a muscle he was floating in the air.

With his tail tucked between legs and his eyes closed tight, Snuffle whimpered like a scared little pup. "Be brave, Snuffles. Remember you're a Gryffindor… Gryffindor dogs aren't scary cats." Harry called as his dog floated through the trap door.

"Right," Ron said as he picked up a shining, silvery cloth that was sitting next to where Harry and Snuffles had been, "I'll just pop right up there, set everything up and be right back. Umm… Dobby?" Ron turned to the Elf for help.

With a smile of the House Elf face, Ron was soon floating through the trap door, Harry's invisibility cloak and the recorder in hand. 

~*~

"The spirit world is very active today, my children," Professor Trelawney announced in a softy misty voice as she appeared in the firelight, her chains and bangles making a ringing noise whenever she moved. "The spirits demands I do a reading for each of you."

Trelawney slowly circle the room foretelling the future or important information for each of her students. "I'm afraid that your pet will become very sick, soon he'll be nothing but some fur and bones," she told Neville.

"Trevor's a toad," Neville said as he looked up at the teacher like she was insane.

"Ahh it must be the far flung future child," Trelawney replied patting Neville on the shoulder. "I am afraid the animal will die." 

"Give up Quidditch," she cried out hysterically as she turned to Dean, "it will be the death of you!"

"Yeah right, and Draco is really an angel in disguise," Dean mumbled.

Professor Trelawney snorted at Dean's comment as Lavender and Parvati looked on in horror. "You really should listen to her, Dean. After all, she can foretell the future." Parvati said bossily.

Dean just shook his head in disgust while their professor turned her eyes on new meat.

"If only the Headmaster had listened to my prediction," Trelawney said with a theatrical sigh as she rested her hands on Harry's shoulders.

"Are you saying it's Dumbledore's fault Harry's blind?" Ron asked through clenched teeth as a number of students glared at the Divination professor.

"Of course not, child," Trelawney said as she waved off Ron's accusation. "However, if he had listened to me, we might have been able to prevent such a tragic accident."

"It wasn't an accident," Harry comment as he knocked Trelawney's hands away.

"You're right, my dear. You're right. It was the will of the Fates," Trelawney said, the back of her hand pressed against her forehead. "I fear the spirits are leaving us for now."

Lavender and Patil moaned in disappointment as the rest of the class rolled their eyes.

"So let us begin our studies of unfogging the mystery of the mind. Today we will be reviewing the use of crystal balls…" Trelawney began her lecture when a soft unearthly moan came from behind her. She swung around to see who was making the noise only to find Potter.

Trelawney quickly turned around to see who interrupted her only to find the pale faces of her students staring at Potter. Another moan escaped Potter's parted lips.

"Harry? This isn't funny Harry?" Ron said in a panic as he watched his best friend's head rock back and forth. 

Trelawney grabbed Ron's arm as the boy reached out to touch Harry. "Don't touch him. He's in a trance," she said in awe as she watched the boy.

Slowly Harry reached out for the crystal ball sitting in front of him, blue electricity cracking between his fingers, jumping to the crystal ball. Suddenly, Harry stopped moving. "She is in darkness." A deep voice came from Harry's mouth. "She had angered them. She has angered the beast."

"What beast? Who is she?" Trelawney asked fearfully as she crouched down next to where Harry sat. "What did she do?"

"Lies," the deep voice echoed in the room. "She told lies. Lies of death. She has angered the beast."

"Who is she?" Trelawney demanded her voice squeaking. "What beast?"

Harry turned his head until Trelawney was looking him straight into his sightless eyes. "You are she." Harry whispered. Suddenly Harry threw his head back. "He comes!" Harry screamed before collapsing.

Trelawney rose from her crouch, her body shaking as she grasped at her chains and medallions. She looked around at the fright faces of her students. "I…"

A deep foreboding growl came from the darkened corner of the room. All eyes turned and stared into the shades that filled the corner when suddenly a black shaped appeared out of thin air. The creature jumped over the heads of Parvati and Lavender and landed in the middle of the table.

In the middle of the table stood a huge hound the size of a calf with eyes like fire. It bared its large white teeth and growled at Trelawney.

Trelawney stared right into the jaws of the dog, her nose wrinkled at the beast's bad breath. "It's a Grim," she simply said before her eyes rolled up in her head, and she collapsed to the floor.

~*~

"The next thing I know I was on the floor and Snuffles was licking my face," Harry innocently said as he popped a grape into his mouth. 

"Yes but **how** did that dog get in there?" Lavender asked from her seat down the table. "It's not like it could have climbed the ladder."

Dean rolled his eyes. "The dog must have sensed Harry's distress over that fraud's prediction and thought he was endanger. I won't be surprise if Dumbledore had placed charms on the dog so that he could protect Harry," he said pointing at the dog under the table. "Come on just look at him. Have you ever seen a dog like that before? He's huge!"

"Oh come on Dean. He's just a dog," Ron sighed in irritation. "The next thing you know, people will be saying Snuffles is Sirius Black in disguise."

Harry choked on his drink. 

"Ron! Please!" Hermione said looking up from her book. "You know how Harry is about **that** man."

"Sorry, Harry," Ron said looking down at his plate trying not to grin.

At that moment owls began to fly thought the window into the Great Hall. "Ron?" Harry called out as the hall descended into silence, the students watching the owls in confusion.

As if a dance, owls dove towards the tables, dropping the mail they carried for their owners before disappearing out the windows.

"Did I get my paper this morning?"

"…Special edition?"

Hermione placed her paper to the side, "I'll read it later," she mumbled as she turned the page of her thick book in front of her.

"Wonder what's happened," Dean said as he opened up his copy of the paper.

"Harry?" Colin Creevey called out from his seat among younger Gryffindors, who were chattering and pointing at an article in the paper. 

"Yes Colin?" Harry sighed before he taking a sip from his glass. 

"Umm. Is it true you're a virgin?" Pumpkin juice sprayed out of Harry's mouth and over Ron at Colin's comment. "I mean the Daily Prophet says you are but I figured that with you being you..." Colin shrugged his shoulder as if that explained everything. "Well you would have had plenty of offers." 

"What do you mean the Daily Prophet says so?" Hermione asked as she hands a napkin to Ron as he tried to clean up before picking up her copy of the paper. 

"It's on page four, Hermione," Colin explained as he turned his paper so that everyone could see a picture of Harry taken at the end of the Tri-wizard Tournament in the paper. "It has some thing to do with a Lee sang de Maggie." He looked down at the paper then back up at the others again. "What's a Lee sang de Maggie?" 

Ron silently repeated Colin's words to himself; suddenly the blood ran out of his face as he dropped the napkins that he was using. "Le sang de Magie!" Without warning Ron reached over and ripped the newspaper out of Dean's hands. 

"Hey that's mine!" Dean exclaimed in outrage as he glared at Weasley. 

Ron quickly sorted out the paper and scanned the article. "Bloody hell!" Ron exclaimed as gripped the paper tightly. 

"Fudge can't do that!" Ginny whispered in disbelief as she read the paper over Ron's shoulder. "Can he?" 

"Ron?" Harry asked, his voice betraying the concern and inpatients he was feeling. "What is it? What's Le sang de Magie?" 

A soft whimper came from under the table as Snuffles softly nudged Harry's leg. Harry reached out and scratched the dog behind the ear, trying to reassure his Godfather

"It's French. It means blood of magic or magic blood." Ron stated as he ran a shaky hand through his hair, as Dean snatched his newspaper back. "It's an ancient wizard law." 

"I've never seen it in any book on wizard history?" Hermione mumbled as she chewed on her bottom lips. "So what exactly is it, and what does it have to do with Harry?" Her eyes narrowed as she took in the embarrassed expression of a number of her fellow Gryffindors, pureblood and wizard raised Gryffindors

"It an embarrassment, Hermione," Neville comment his eyes resting on his plate, playing with his fork. "It's something one does not talk about outside of family. It's a deep dark secret of the wizard community." 

"Would someone please explain to me what's going on!" Harry growled as he threaded his fingers through Snuffles' thick fur as the dog rested his head on Harry's lap. "What is it? And what does it have to do with me?"

"It's kind of complex Harry," Ginny said after a few minutes as the wizard born looked at anything but at Harry. "Le sang de Magie was a way of preserving the blood line and a way to give an injured witch or wizard security, a purpose for their life." 

"Well that sound fine and dandy, but what does my sex life or lack of it have to do with anything?" Harry growled as he drummed his fingers of his free hand on the table.

"You're being sold as breeding stock," Hermione said as she looking up from the article.

Harry sat in stunned silence. "Excuse me?" he finally said after a few minutes had passed. "Did you just say I was being sold?"

"More like an arranged marriage," Ron said quickly, his face as red as his hair

"To the highest bidder," Hermione commented

Harry drummed his fingers harder on the table. "I'm being sold to the highest bidder so I can marry some girl…"

"Or guy," Neville said softly, the tips of his ears turning red. "There are spells to make you get pregnant."

"All right, let me get this straight. I'm being sold to the highest bidder so I can either get a girl pregnant or get knocked up myself." Harry growled.

"Yeah. After you've proven you can sire offspring, your new family can hire you out to other families."

"So I'm being sold into prostitution." 

"And just like dog breeder, they want to know everything about the animal they're going to purchase," Hermione stated as she continued to read the paper. "They have everything about you Harry. Your height, weight, favorite food, your grade, evens how you prefer boxers over briefs."

A deep unearthly growl echo through the school as Harry sat at Gryffindor table drumming his fingers harder. "Let see if I got this now," he said through his clutch teeth, "The Daily Prophet published every detail of my personal life in the newspaper so that an informed bidder can purchase me for their whore house."

"It's not like that Harry," Ron said hurriedly as he tried to calm his friend. "Most of the families don't treat it like that. More like an arranged married."

"Harry," Ginny said softly so not to upset Potter farther, "many of the pure blood families… well… they're not pure blood. Often a family would take in an injured witch or wizard into the family. Any children born would only have one parent list so they could continue to say they're pure blood. Our great great grandmother Evelyn was a Muggle born who lost her wand arm in a fight; she learned to love her husband. Our family would never treat you as a whore."

"Do offence but do you really think your parents can afford to purchase me? I'm the bloody Boy Who Lived. Only someone with a lot…" The blood ran out of Harry's face as he stopped talk. "No," he moaned. "It's going to come true."

"What is Harry?" Hermione ask as she grasped Harry's arm trying to comfort him. "What's going to come true?'

"My dream," Harry whispered with horror filling his sightless eyes. "They'll outbid everyone until they own me. Then they'll give me to him."

Snuffles began to whimper and nudging Harry's hand with his nose.

"I was better off with Vernon," Harry said softly. "At least he would never rape me."

"Harry," Professor Lupin said the boy's name softly as he rested his hand on Harry's should. "The Headmaster would like to see you in his office."

"Of course," Harry's shoulders slumped dejectedly as he muttered those words before rising up and allowing Remus to lead him out of the Great Hall with Snuffles at his heels.

They left the hall in silence as those that were left behind chatted about Potter's future and his personal life.

"I'm sure that Dumbledore has a plan, Harry," Remus said as he guided the quiet boy down the halls.

"What does it matter," Harry replied softly. Remus and Snuffle shared a look of concern for Harry. "Everything I have and everything I have lost is due to magic. What difference does it make if magic take away my choice of lovers.?"

They walked along in silence as both Sirius and Remus tried to figure out a way to save Harry from this mess, to give his life meaning once again. "Cockroach caramels," Remus said when the reached the statue guarding Dumbledore's office.

Once they were in the office Sirius immediately transformed and grabbed Harry's by the shoulders. "Don't you say that," he hissed as he gave Harry a shake. "Don't you dare say that! What happens to you does matter!"

"Don't you get it Sirius? I've lost! I can't fight the Ministry. Not when the law is on their side. I'm going to be sold to the highest bidder like an animal, like a thing." Harry's voice took on a bitter, biting tone "And if it's hadn't crossed you mind Sirius I'll probably end up with Malfoy or someone else who is rich enough to outbid all others for me. And then I'll be handed off to Voldemort."

"I'm not going to let that happen. We can run away. I can protect you."

Harry shook his head. "It would be too much of a danger, Sirius. They've forgotten about you, but if I went with you, they'll hunt us down and they **will** find us. And they will give you the kiss. And I will still be handed over to my new owner!"

"I can assure you, Harry, that I am not going to let that happen," Dumbledore stated in a firm, commanding voice from behind his desk. 

"How could you let them do that," Sirius growled angrily, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the Headmaster. "How could you let them sell Harry?"

"Unfortunately, my hands were tied. Fudge is unwilling to see the truth in front of him and is willing to hide the truth at all possible costs," Dumbledore explained as he sat down behind his desk. "I am willing to say he will have a number of howlers for this." 

"But what are we going to do in the mean time?" Remus asked as he guides Harry to a chair. "I can imagine how happy Voldemort is knowing that he can **buy** Harry." 

"Is there anything we can do? Can we delay the bidding or reject bids from people like Malfoy?" Sirius asked desperately as he stood next to Harry's chair, a hand resting on the boy's shoulder. 

"Unfortunately, no. The law doesn't allow it. If a person has the money, they may bid," Dumbledore explained as he played with a lemon drop. 

"So I could buy myself," Harry said. "After all I do have the money."

Dumbledore shocked his head. "I'm sorry, child. The law strictly forbids the person or family from purchasing themselves." The Headmaster looked at the defeated face of the young men in front of him. "How much do you know of Le sang de Magie?" 

Sirius and Remus looked at each other and shrugged. "Only what Ron and Ginny were able to tell. That I'm begin sold into prostitution so I can either father or carry some man's child," Harry stated.

"Ah, I see." Dumbledore said stroking his beard in thought. "While I would like to say you cannot be passed around for a child's price, I cannot. It was a common way of spreading the line out so that it could not die out."

" The law itself is very simple. It states that any unmarried witch or wizard who is unable to perform magic safely due to injury must be married off in order to preserve the magic that is carried in their blood. A dowry of an amount determined at the time of the marriage is given to the family of the one who was injured to compensation for their lost of a loved one.

"At one time the families would carefully search for a suitable mate for the injured person, sometimes taking years. Often it took years for families to agree on a dowry. After the ministry was formed, a bidding system was put in place with a set of rules for the minimum bid for a person. The minimum bid is determined by the person's family history, if they're pureblood, nature of injuries, their own history, magic level… the list goes on. Everything is a factored into it"

Sirius snorted. "Why worry about the kids happiness when Galleons are involved?"

"Unfortunately yes," Dumbledore said as he nodded his head. "It wasn't unheard of for families to injure their own so they could collect a dowry nor for an enemy to injure someone so the may _marry_ them."

"Now I've already talked to the Weasleys and they have agreed to purchase you." Dumbledore smiled as he changed the subject. "You'll enter a long term engagement with one of the Weasley's child… umm I didn't think to ask Harry but which do you prefer, boys or girls?"

Harry's face turned red. "Umm… Ah… Umm… neither or both. I don't know. I've never really thought of it. Normally I was just trying to survive the school year and potion class."

"What about the Chang girl?" Remus spoke up. "Or Hermione? The paper said your two where a couple."

"And the Daily Prophet also prints that I'm mentally unstable," Harry snapped. "Hermione and I are just friends. She more interested in Ron than anyone else. And as for Cho," he shrugged his shoulder, "I guess I was interested in her because she was a Seeker too."

"Very well, we'll leave that open," Dumbledore said with a smile on his face. "Personally I think young Bill would make an excellent match for Harry especially with his skills in curses." 

"You mean you can decide who wins?" Harry blinked in shock. "No matter what the bids are?" 

"No." Dumbledore shook his head. "Unfortunately I can not. But I can look at a number of the top bids and choice the one most likely to be able to care and protect you." 

"And you would choose the Weasleys?" Sirius asked.

Harry snorted. "I'm not trying to be crude but the Weasleys can't afford me. Not against someone like Malfoy; he would simply outbid them." 

"That's true Harry. Unless they have a sponsor." A smirk appeared on the Headmaster's face.

"A sponsor?" Harry, Remus and Sirius said in shock.

"Myself," Dumbledore said simply the corner of his eyes crinkled in merriment. "And if you would like I can use money from your account and your inheritance to help." 

"My inheritance?" Harry's brow furrowed in confusion.

Dumbledore nodded his head, the corner of his eyes crinkled in amusement. "Your grandparents' accounts, which are being held in trust for you until you graduate from Hogwarts and of course Sirius's accounts." 

"My accounts?" 

"Harry was awarded everything in your name when you were sentenced to Azkaban," Remus explained from his chair next to Harry.

"But I can't take Sirius's money!" Harry said in outrage.

"The hell you can't!" Sirius exclaimed as he stared down at his godson. "If it keeps you out of the hands of Malfoy it's well worth it!" 

"Think of it as a loan, Harry," Dumbledore suggested. "The money from the auction would become the property of the injured family. And since you have no family the money ends up going to you. Which would then becomes the property of your owner, in this case the Weasley." 

"So they would pay the loans back," Harry said. "But isn't this illegal? You're my guardian and you're loaning people money so they can buy me." 

Dumbledore chuckled. "Actually, there is no law against it. I can't imagine there will be an investigation after the sell is concluded." 

"So Harry will be engaged to Bill or Ginny or perhaps one of the twins," Remus stated as he chewed his bottom lip in though.

"That's correct, Remus. The engagement will be in name only until each of them finds someone they want to be with, at which time the engagement will be broken and the Ministry will reconsider Harry's status of being unable to do magic."

"Get it in writing," Sirius mumbled, as he looked down at the floor, deep in though.

"What?" Dumbledore said in confusion.

"Get everything, all the agreement, all the promises in writing. If anything happen to Arthur and Molly, I don't want Harry pressed into marrying one of them."

"Sirius, they won't do that," Harry said in shock.

Sirius shook his head. "Harry you can't guarantee what will happen. What if Percy decides he can advance farther in the Ministry with you as his property? Do you think he won't share you if it means he'll move farther up the ladder."

"You make him out to sound like a Slytherin, Sirius." Remus said.

Harry sat in silence for a few minutes before he started to nod his head. "I agree with Sirius. Get it in writing."

~*~

Somewhere in North America, the sun slowly climbed above the horizon as a woman sat on her terrace watching the world come alive. Her long black and silver hair gently moved in the breeze and she raised her face to catch the warming rays of the sun.

"Madam," a house elf in tailored clothing said as he held a silver tray with a newspaper out towards the woman, "a special edition of the Daily Prophet has just arrived."

"How odd," the woman commented, brushing her hair from her face as removed the paper from the tray. "Thank you, Faris." She said as she opened the paper. "Perhaps Fudge has a hang nail and wishes to share it with the world."

The lady quiet sipped her tea as she began to read the paper. Her eyes widened as she read the headline her tea spilled out of the cup as her hand shock. "Faris!" she called out. 

The house elf immediately appeared in front of her. "Madam, what is a matter?" Faris said his concern for his lady evident in his voice as he took in how upset she was.

"Light a fire, Faris. I need to call my solicitor immediately," she replied through clutched teeth, the paper crumpled in her hands.

While Faris worked to build a fire, the lady paced back and forth, the paper crumbled in her fist. "The fire is ready, my Lady," Faris announced as he stepped away from the roaring fire.

"Thank you, Faris." The woman took a couple deep-calming breaths before stepped up to the fire. Taking a tin on the mantle, she threw a fistful of powder from the container into the fire and called out in a firm voice. "Donovan and Kokoris." 

The fire crackled for a moment before the face of a handsome man with a light touch of grey to his black hair "This is Frank Dovovan, how can… Brenna!" the man exclaimed with a dazzling grin as he realized who had just called him. "What is it? You look upset." The smile faded as he notices how upset Brenna was.

Brenna shocks the crumbled newspaper at Frank. "Have you seen this **trash**, Frank?" she said her voice cracking with angry.

"Ah, Potter." Frank nodded his head in understanding. "Yes. Truly a shame. Such a promising young wizard. Personally I think Fudge is a moron for trying something like this with him. But you know Fudge would do anything to make himself look good."

"Buy him." Brenna snapped a crazed look in her eyes

Frank blinked a couple of time at her statement. "Excuse me. Did you just say buy him?"

"That's is correct. Do whatever you need to, sell all my stock, and my companies if you need to, but buy that child," She commanded.

"Brenna, I don't think that such a good idea." Frank said nervously running a hand through his hair "You being you and all the rest." 

"I don't care Frank. Just make sure to win Harry for me." Brenna's expression softens. "It's a family debt, Frank. I own that boy so much for what happened. And I'll be damned before I let Malfoy or anyone else get their hands on that child."


	8. Impeachment and Creme

Disclaimer: Yes I do own Harry Potter and Sirius Black is my slave. But this dream is only allowed on my birthday, which is today.

Bad Author Notes: Yes I have joined the growing group of people who had their author notes removed from FF. I didn't know about the new rule, come on people how many of us visit the front-page regular?

This chapter was a bitch to write do to the fact that I had to invent some things about the wizard community. Did a lot of research on the British government, questioned my friends and then made everything up.

Sorry there is no cake for everyone on my 32nd birthday but you can enjoy this fic. 

Impeachment And Cream

By Lady FoxFire

January 26, 2004

"It's not right!" Colin ranted furiously as he paced back and forth in front of the blazing fire. "I mean, he's Harry Potter! He shouldn't be sold like… like… like cattle!"

"Oh, so you're saying it's not right to sell him since he's Harry Potter?" Melissa, a second year Muggle born witch, contended angrily. 

"Of course!" Colin countered in shock. "After all, he's _Harry Potter_. He saved the world from You-Know-Who!"

"Oh, so because it's _Harry Potter_,it's different?" Melissa said, her eyes darkening with anger, and her face turning grim. "So if my cousin, who is handicapped, were a witch, then it would be alright to sell her?"

"No!" Colin retorted in a tone one would reserve for a small child. "Of course not!"

"But weren't you the one who said that because he saved the world, he shouldn't be sold? You didn't say that Le sang de Magie was wrong, just because it was wrong to sell anyone!" Melissa pointed out venomously.

"I meant that!" Colin sputtered in outrage. "You're twisting my words around!"

"**SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP!"**

The youngest Wesley's outburst shocked the room into silence.

"You stop talking that way! No one is selling Harry!" Ginny snapped as she glared at Colin and Melissa. "If you keep talking like that, I'll… I'll…"

"Ginny," Ron called softly as he strode over to his baby sister and gathered her in his arms. "It will be alright," he whispered comfortingly into her hair as he gently rubbed her back. "The Headmaster won't let anything happen to Harry. You'll see."

Ginny's shoulders slumped in defeat as she allowed her brother to hold her. "It's not fair…it's not fair," Ginny repeated over and over again, hiding her face in Ron's shoulder.

"I can't believe that the wizarding community would condone this… this atrocity!" Hermione exclaimed in a huff, as she stalked back and forth, seething like a saber-toothed tiger that warned others to avoid her path.

"A lot of people won't stand for it, Hermione," Neville assured, looking up from the Herbology book he was reading, "but you have to understand what a status symbol it would be to own the Boy Who Lived."

"A status symbol!" Hermione bellowed in outrage, stopping to glare at Neville.

"Yeah, and think of the kids," Seamus suggested from where Dean and he were playing chess. "Can you imagine how it would be to say your parent is Harry Potter? It would be like saying my mum's the Queen of England."

Conversation around the common room petered off as Seamus's words were repeated by students as they realized what Harry's future would be like if he were sold.

Before any argument broke out, the portal door opened, ushering Snuffles and Harry in with Professor Lupin following close at their heels.

The entire room stared in silence at the Boy Who Would Be Sold and their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, waiting for someone to say something.

"Well, either someone fed Gryffindor a voice stealing potion, or everyone is standing there gapping at us like fish out of water," Harry stated with a half of a smile, his damaged eyes hidden behind his sunglasses

"Actually, I think they're trying to attract birds," Remus replied in a thoughtful tone, his eyes crinkled in amusement.

"Ah," Harry mused in a knowing tone. "Mouth open just waiting for a bird to land in it and build a nest?"

"Exactly," Remus concluded with a snort. "They remind me of what happened to fourth year Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs in potion class during my second year. Somehow, there was a mix up and the class drank a potion that froze their mouths open. Of course, Professor Vatblasky refuses to allow Poppy... umm, I mean Madam Pomfrey to cure them." Remus chuckled as he remembered the event. "It took a week for it to finally wear off."

"You wouldn't happen to know what the potion was?" Ron asked with a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Ronald Andrew Weasley!" Hermione exclaimed with arms akimbo and a frown firmly etched in her face, using what can only be described as a mother's 'You're in **BIG** trouble, young man' tone of voice.

"But Hermione," Ron whined as he looked at her with an innocent expression on his face, "I only want to how so you can prepare an antidote. You know how my brothers are. They'll find out what was used and then _they'll_ test it on some poor, unsuspecting soul."

Hermione narrowed her eyes, her arms folded over her chest. "I'll believe that when pigs fly," she snipped sardonically as she tapped her foot.

Ron cocked his head to the side, confusion clearly written on his face. "But they do."

"They… Pigs… They do?" Hermione stammered incredulity as she looked at Ron in confusion.

"Of course they do," Ron said. "My Uncle Andrew, on Mum's side, raises Welsh Winged Pigs…"

As Ron explained how pigs could fly to Hermione and the other Muggle born students, Remus had a chance to observe the Gryffindor common room.

His eyes roamed about, lingering once in a while on select couches or tapestries. But his eyes lit up when he spied four words painted above the door to the common room in dark blue paint. "Lions roar and snakes…" he whispered to himself.

"Ahh, I see that you have discovered one of the great mysteries of the Gryffindor Tower," Fred, or perhaps it was George, announced with a smug air as the red headed boy walked over to the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, his brother just a few steps behind. "The unfinished prank. Well, we assume it's unfinished anyway."

"No one knows who painted this glorious message, what inspiring message they were trying to pass on to future generations of Gryffindors, or what terrible calamity stopped them from finishing," the other twin explained solemnly as he stood next to his brother. "These unanswered questions have haunted many a Gryffindor for years."

"Someone tell Colin to get his camera ready," Harry whispered out of the side of this mouth, a small sly smile on his face.

And evil grin stretched across Ron's face a he realized what was about to happen, "Oh, this is all too perfect," he muttered with a cackle as he eagerly followed every move.

"Lions roar and snakes crawl at their feet or something like that. You would have to ask Padfoot. After all, it was his idea," Remus mused with a shrug of his shoulders as he continued to stare up at the message, a whimsical smile on his face.

"Padfoot?" George chocked in surprise at the sound of his hero's name.

"You knew _Padfoot_?" Fred gasped in awe, his eyes wide with the mention of one of the Marauders.

Remus nodded his head as he looked at the twins. "Of course, the writing was supposed to change: different colors, a new inspiring message for the day—that type of thing."

"So what happened?" Fred asked curiously as he gazed upon the unfinished prank with a new respect.

"Why did they stop?" Jordan Lee posed as he stepped up to Fred's shoulder. "From what Gred and Feorge have told me, there was nothing that could stop them."

"Only one person could ever stop us. The fiercest and most feared of all Muggle born witches _ever _to attend Hogwarts," Remus whispered with fear and dread as if speaking of this witch would cause her to appear. 

"Lily Evans," Dennis, Colin's little brother, whispered with reverence, his eyes wide. "What was she like?"

"I bet she was like Snape," Jordan stated with a sniff. "She was probably mean and evil just like the slimy git. And so ugly that she couldn't look in a mirror without it breaking."

"HEY! SHE WAS MY MUM!" Harry exclaimed angrily, jumping to defend his mother's honor.

Remus chuckled a bit in amusement. "Actually, Lily was beautiful and the kindest person you would ever meet. But she had one hell of a temper and a knock-out uppercut," He explained, massaging his jaw. "I've noticed that it seems to be one thing that all women with red hair share.

"But back to my story…Padfoot had just finished painting the word snake when Lily came down the stairs from the girls' dorm. Being a Perfect, she of course _confiscated_ the paint and hid it in some unknown location. The only thing to save us from receiving a detention or losing points for the prank was Prongs's fast talking." Remus looked back up at the unfinished prank again. "We were never able to find that paint, either."

"I always wondered why there were paint cans hidden in our dorm rooms," Alicia mumbled.

"You helped!" George cried as he suddenly realized what Remus has said.

Fred looked at his brother then at Professor Lupin in confusion for only a moment before it hit him. "You were helping the Marauders!"

"Allow me to introduce myself," Remus began very formally in a voice one would normally associate with Gilderoy Lockhart, bowing deeply with a heavily flourished to those assembled in the common room, "Messr. Moony at your service."

"Moo… Moo... Moo…" Fred jabbered listlessly over and over again as his brother George pointed at the teacher, his mouth opening and closing as if he were a fish out of water.

"Moony," Ron asserted firmly in a know-it-all voice. "Just like Harry's father was Prongs and his Godfather was Padfoot."

George's eyes rolled up into his head before collapsing to the floor at Remus's feet.

"You knew!" Fred screeched in a high-pitched voice that made people wince in pain.

"Yep," Ron affirmed very proudly, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet. "I've know since my third year."

"Third year!" Fred squeaked his eyes bugging out.

"Don't forget to tell your brothers how the Marauders got their names," Hermione reminded with an encouraging nudge.

"You knew too!" Fred yelped as he turned and stared at Hermione, who only grinned and nodded her head as solemnly as she could.

"I can't believe you didn't know!" Ginny blurted with a dramatic sigh as she rolled her eyes at her brothers. "Professor Lupin is Moony 'cause he's a _werewolf_."

At this point, Fred's eyes rolled up into his head before he joined his brother on the floor.

Ginny looked up from where her brothers lay to Remus. "Did I guess right?" she asked innocently. "Isn't that why you're called Moony?"

Harry bit his lips to keep from laughing as Ron beamed proudly at his baby sister.

"If I didn't know better, I would say she was Lily's reincarnate," Remus said to Harry and Snuffles.

"Umm, who were the Marauders?" a small first year boy asked nervously.

"The greatest pranksters Hogwarts has ever seen," Ron replied smugly, his ear-splitting grin taking up his whole face.

"What types of pranks?" someone from the back of the crowd asked.

"Did you play any on Professor Snape?" another Gryffindor called out.

"Of course! But you need to remember that at that time, Professor Snape was also a student," Remus clarified.

"See! I told you he wasn't an immortal demon raised up from the pits of Hell to torment us!" A third year girl with dark brown hair whispered furiously to her fellow classmate.

"Fine then, he's possessed by a demon," the blond boy retorted as he crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the girl. "But my brother Sean said he once saw him spit up green slime, and that he can turn his head all away around. That's a sign that he's possessed. I saw it in a movie once." 

"Snape isn't a demon from Hell, nor is he possessed," Dean assured, interrupting the pending argument. "He's just a mutated humanoid bat creature who's come to Hogwarts to suck the life out of students. Besides, _I_ believe that only twelve year old girls from Georgetown can be possessed by a demon that spits up green slime."

"I don't get it," Ron whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

"I'll explain later," Hermione muttered her reply.

"Please tell us about some of the pranks you pulled as a student!" A second year girl with big steel grey eyes begged.

"YEAH, TELL US!"

"Alright, but first, someone needs to wake these two," Remus announced with a nod toward the twins. "I'm sure they would be devastated to miss of some of the pranks we pulled."

Immediately Ginny had her wand in hands. "I'll do it," Ginny volunteered in a singsong voice, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "_Conglacio aquaeductus_!" she exclaimed with a wave and a flick.

From out of nowhere ice cold water poured down upon the two unconscious boys.

"Who? What? Why? When? How?" The twins sputtered as they wiped their wet hair from their face with their teeth chattering and their lips slightly blue.

"I've always wanted to do that to them," Angelina grumbled darkly amidst the chortles of her fellows.

"Same here," Katie replied as Alicia nodded her head in agreement.

"What's going on?" Fred asked as he looked up at everyone.

"Professor Lupin was about to tell us about some of the pranks he played when he was a student," a small second year girl explained excitedly.

"Stories…" George started to say, his eyes fill with longing.

"…From the great and oh-so-wonderful Marauders?" Fred finished his brother's sentence.

Immediately the twins were on their knees at Remus's feet. "Do tell, oh great one," Fred begged as he bowed, arms out stretched in front of him in renewed awe, worshipping his hero.

"Teach us to become great masters of pranks, oh wise and wonderful teacher." George said, mimicking his brother's actions

Remus glanced over at Padfoot, who looked liked he'd swallowed a hair ball, and then back at the twins, "Right…Well in our third year we…"

While Remus told those gathered around him about his time as a Marauder, the Head of Gryffindor House slipped into the tower unnoticed. 

Minerva McGonagall stopped and listened to the story about how the Marauders filled the Slytherins common room full of green gelatin. She soon covered her mouth to muffle her giggles.

"And of course, once they entered the Great Hall, we had to dump the whipped cream over them. All that was needed was for them to be topped off with a green cherry or perhaps a slice of kiwi fruit."

The room erupted into chuckles and giggles at the image of their dreaded Potions Master and other well off purebloods looking like a Muggle dessert.

"What was you favorite prank?" someone from the back of the room asked as the laughter died down

"What about the professors? Did you prank any of them?"

A mischievous look crept across Remus's face, "Yeah," he continued with a smirk on his face, oblivious to the Deputy Headmistress's formidable presence behind him. "We pranked every single teacher at least three times before we graduated. But my favorite prank… well my favorite prank on a teacher was the first one we'd pulled on Professor McGonagall."

McGonagall's eyes narrowed as she listened to what her former student's words. A few students noticed her presence but a quick glance from her cold steely eyes stopped any thought of warning their Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor.

"By now, everyone with the exception of the first years should know that our beloved Transfiguration professor is an Animagus—a tabby cat to be exact." A smirk appeared on Remus's face as he continued. "You need to remember that to become an Animagus is a difficult and dangerous undertaking. It is not something people should do by themselves. It takes special training and guidance from a trained Animagus for one to successfully access one's inner animal."

Snuffles let out a snort at this comment while Harry, Hermione and Ron tried to hide their laughter.

"But I'm straying from my tale," Remus announced with the mysterious air of a storyteller as he picked up the tale once again. "It was the winter of our sixth year, and for reasons that will remain nameless," Remus cheeks reddened at the thought of a childhood incident, "Professor McGonagall was able to force us to promise on our wands not to prank any of the Houses for _two whole months_."

"Let me tell you that this went beyond being cruel and unusual punishment; for pranksters like us, this was the Kiss of Death. " Remus shivered at the memory. "Anyone could pull pranks and jokes on us and we could not raise one finger against them until our promise was fulfilled. Imagine what it would be like to have the _Slytherins_ pull prank after prank on us while they gloated over the fact we couldn't do a thing."

"Even our mum isn't that cruel," the twins said as they commiserated in sympathy.

"By the second week, Padfoot was in a bad way. He was almost crazed from seeing all the opportunities pass us by, unable to pull a single prank or joke, when he made a comment that caused an epiphany among us all. We realize that while we promised not to prank any of the Houses, but we didn't promise not to prank any of the staff."

"Epiphany?" Fred whispered in question to his brother.

"It means the idea smacked them across the head like I'm about to, if you don't keep your mouth shut," Alicia snarled quietly at the twins.

"As soon as we had realized this, we started to plan. Binns, Vatblasky, not even our venerable Headmaster was immune from our revenge, but we save our best for one person: our beloved Professor Minerva McGonagall."

"It took us over a week until we'd agreed upon a plan which we christened Operation: Here, Kitty Kitty. We had decided to let McGonagall experience the wrath of the Marauders in threefold."

"Stage One: Viva La Fleas," Remus cheered with an evil smirk. "We gave Professor McGonagall a case of fleas that no pest removing charm or potion would be able to rid. If she transformed into a human, the fleas would vanish as if they were never there, but as soon as she changed back into a cat, they returned with vengeance." Remus chuckled. "This went on for an entire month."

McGonagall gritted her teach, her wand tightly grasped in her hand as she listened to her fellow professor go on with the tale of how the Marauders had pranked her years ago.

"Stage Two, we nicknamed Cat Toys from Hell," Remus explained. "We set it up so that catnip-filled toys would show up at odd times and places. Now, that may not sound like anything, but imagine what it would be like to find hundreds of cat toys stuffed into your classroom every single day during all hours of the day _and_ night. We had them appear under her pillows, on her dinner plate, in her pockets, and even in the shower. The hardest part was tying the spell so that her own magic supplied it, making it impossible for her to track it back to us."

"Eventually, she called us into her office and told us to stop it, at which time Prongs reminded her that we had sworn not to pull any prank. After all, we had promised not to prank our fellow students."

"Remind me to NEVER piss Remus off," Ron whispered to Harry, who only nodded his head in agreement.

"McGonagall's confrontation was our signal to begin Stage Three: Jake the Mouse," Remus continued, ignoring Ron's comment.

"Jake the Mouse?" Harry asked, his eyebrow raised above his sunglasses.

Remus shrugged his shoulders. "You know what Padfoot's sense of humor is like."

Harry snorted. "Warped and twisted," he answered as he shook his head, a smirk spread across his face.

"Exactly," Remus agreed with a cheesy grin. "Now, a little known fact is that Animagi have a tendency to develop the traits that their animal forms have while still in their human form. For example, an Animagus who transforms into a dog may growl at people they don't like or shake after getting out of a shower while in their human form. Cat Animagi have a tendency to be clean freaks and a dislike of small, furry, rodent-like creatures." 

"So Padfoot created Jake, a masterpiece of such grandeur that I doubt could ever be duplicated. Jake is a tiny blue ghost of a mouse whose job was to haunt Professor McGonagall's rooms, but only when she was alone. It wouldn't appear when anyone else was there. Even the school ghosts couldn't find it."

"No trap or spell could catch him. And if McGonagall had tried to find him as a cat... well, it's hard to catch something that doesn't have a scent. Just imagine how McGonagall, as a cat, tried to chase this tiny blue mouse around…"

"REMUS JOTHANIN LUPIN!" Professor McGonagall cried in a firm, commanding voice as she grabbed her former student by the ear. "You are in big trouble, young man."

Everyone stared in utterly stunned silence as the Head of Gryffindor dragged their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher out of the tower by his ear, berating him the whole time.

"I didn't know you could get detention after you graduate," Jake Slope, a sixth year boy, mused breathlessly once the door was shut.

"Only if you're a Gryffindor," Jordan Lee answered bemusedly, his eyes still glued on the door. "Only if you're a Gryffindor."

"So what did the Headmaster want?" Colin asked as he bounced with excitement.

"Are they really going to sell you?" Dennis, Colin's little brother asked curiously.

"No way! Dumbledore will stop them! Won't he, Harry?" Someone shouted from the crowd.

Harry sighed and shook his head sadly. "Let me sit down. This is going to take a while to explain."

Snuffles diligently lead Harry through the crowd of Gryffindors until Harry could sit down on the plush couch before the crackling fire. The Weasley clan stood guard, while Hermione hovered nearby like an advisor for a king.

"I'll tell you what I can, and please hold any questions or comments until I'm done," Harry started heavily. "To begin with… yes, I am being auctioned off and no, the Headmaster cannot stop it, even through he's my legal guardian. In seven days, Dumbledore will announce the official rules, along with the day the bidding begins and the initial bid. Are there any questions?"

The room erupted into a cacophony of voices.

"SILENCE!" Hermione commanded in a firm voice, her hands on her hips, looking eerily like a younger version of their transfiguration professor. "Harry can't answer your questions if you keep shouting them out all at once, especially when you're shouting the same questions. Raise your hands if you have a question."

Hands shot into the air before Hermione even finished her comment. A few students had both hands raised, while a few others were jumping up and down wildly flailing their arms.

Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes at the antics of her fellow Gryffindors.

"Rachael Steveson," Ron called out while Hermione looked on in disgust at the antics of her fellow Gryffindors.

The students grew silent as the turned their attention towards the wiry second year girl.

"I was wondering, can a Muggleborn bid?" she asked nervously. "My family is well off…. I mean, I'm sure I can talk my parents into bidding if we can bid. So can we?"

Harry cocked his head to the side; an air of thoughtfulness surrounded him. "I don't see why not. As far as I know there isn't anything in the rules that says a Muggleborn can't place a bid, but I'll check with the Headmaster to make sure."

"Awesome," Rachael squealed, "I always wanted a brother."

Some chucked at Rachael's comment while others threw their hands back into the air.

"You seem to be taking this pretty calmly. How come?" a visiting Ravenclaw stated with a superior attitude as he stared down at Harry and the others.

Harry snorted. "First, I'm exhausted. Secondly, you should see what's left of Dumbledore's office. And finally, I would like to see you try to be upset after being fed one of Snape's calming potions."

"Oh," the Ravenclaw uttered meekly as he glanced around at the surrounding Gryffindors who glared at him.

"Can they sell you to guys as well as to girls?" Andrew Kirke, a sixth year shouted out.

"If you're asking if my sexual preference matters, then no, it doesn't. All that matters is that the payment is full upon conclusion of the sale," Harry stated bitterly.

"You mean your happiness doesn't mean anything? You can be sold to someone you have no interest in! You can be sold to be…" gasped Katie.

"Sold to be raped. Forced to father or bear the child of that rape. Passed around from family to family for a price. And it's all completely legal," Harry stated bluntly, not trying to hide the truth from the innocent ears of younger students.

Gryffindor were stunned into silence.

"That's not right!" 

"There has to be a way to stop it!"

"Hermione, you know everything. You have to know of a way to stop it!"

Hermione looked around at all the hopeful faces that believed in her before she turned her face to the floor, her inability to look at anyone for answer.

"What if Fudge wasn't the Minister anymore? Could the new Minister stop it?" Neville suggested desperately.

Hermione head shot up, her eyes glazed over as she reviewed everything she'd read about Le sang de Magie. "Maybe," she said cautiously. "It can't be revoked, but...it could be placed on hold. Yes, it could be placed on hold until Harry finds someone he wants to be with, and then he could be sold to that person."

"But we have to get Fudge out of office first. And we can't exactly murder the bastard now, can we?" Jordan Lee said.

"No, but we can have him impeached for his crime," Hermione said, her brow furrowed in thought.

"Impeached? What does that mean?" a youthful voice said from the back of the room.

"Impeach. To be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes or misdemeanors," Hermione stated as if reading from dictionary.

"Can he be impeached?" Dean asked. "I mean, I know how government officials are removed from office in the Muggle government, but I have no idea about how it's set up in the wizarding community."

"It's different," Kenneth Towler, a seventh year, said. "The wizarding system of election is similar to that of the Americans. I think our system inspired the Yanks to create the same system when deciding who their leader is. Basically, every adult wizard has the chance to cast one vote for the new Minister." Kenneth's brow furrowed in thought. "Perhaps the Yanks stole the same idea for the removal of officials."

"So how does the American system work?" Parvati asked.

Everyone turned towards Kenneth for an explanation.

"Well… I think they have a referendum, and then the people get a chance to vote," Kenneth answered.

"Referendum?"

"That won't work!" exclaimed Victoria Frobisher, a quiet girl that most people overlooked. "A referendum is for laws and such. In any case, the Ministry would have to enact that, and we know Fudge won't allow that. What we need is a petition that will force the Ministry to allow… allow a recall!"

A number of Gryffindors had dazed expressions on their faces from all of the technical legal words being used.

"Can someone explain all of that to us simple Gryffindors in two syllable words or less?" Ron asked as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Victoria rolled her eyes. "A recall happens when enough people sign a petition demanding a re-election of an official because they don't feel like he's doing his job. If he loses, he's kicked out of office, but if he wins, he gets to finish his term of office."

"But is it legal?" George asked. "Recalls are a Muggle idea; I'm not sure if that is acceptable in the wizard communities."

"And good luck getting any signature," Thomas Abeckeity, a second year wizard said.

"Why do you say that, Thomas?" Hermione eyes glowed with excitement at the idea of inspiring the wizard community into righting a wrong and kicking Fudge out of office.

"My uncle works for the Ministry, and he says if you don't agree with Fudge and his cronies, then you don't have a job," Thomas explained with a shrug.

"He's right, Hermione. Just look at my dad. No promotion and no pay raises since Fudge came into power," Ron explained. "The only reason he doesn't sack my dad is because he has no legal reason to."

"And can you imagine the reaction?" Ginny suggested. "Mum and dad are pretty popular in the wizard community. If Fudge sacked dad without a good reason, it would raise too many questions about how the Ministry is being run. It's easier to hide those who could be a problem and find a reason to sack those who are problems."

"Keeps your friends close and your enemies closer," Harry mused deep in thought.

"Exactly."

"No one who works in the Ministry or has family who work there will sign the petition in fear of losing their job. The only way they'll sign is if there are enough signatures to force the recall, and you can't get enough signatures without them," Thomas stated darkly.

Hope seemed to be sucked out of the common room by Thomas words.

"What about the Muggleborns?" Harry suggested.

"They're in the same boat, Harry," Neville explained. "They either work for the Ministry or have friends or family who do."

"No. I mean…" Harry said as he ran his hand through his hair. "Hermione, your parents pay for you to attend, Hogwarts right?"

"Yeah," Hermione said in confusion by this sudden change of topic.

"So they pay for you to go to Hogwarts, your books, supplies and clothing. And they have no right to say how things are run," Harry stated. "No right to decide on who will be passing laws that will affect their children?"

"I... I don't know," Hermione stuttered at the very idea that Harry proposed.

"And what about Muggles who marry witches or wizards? Do they have any rights?" Harry continued as he pressed the issue.

Many looked over at Seamus, whose mother was married to a Muggle. "I can owl my mum if you want," he said with a shrug.

"Won't they have told my mum and dad? I mean, if they had a right to vote?" asked Natalie MacDonald, a second year, as she looked at the older students.

"No," Ron muttered as he glared at the floor in disgust. "Not if you want to keep the balance of power. Think about it. For each Muggle born… their parents could vote."

"And there are more Muggleborns and half-bloods than purebloods." Angelina states.

"So they're keeping us ignorant so they can have power over us," Hermione growled. A few students shuffled away from her, never taking their eyes from her, waiting for her to attack.

"Or they figure it's your responsibility to find out what your rights are and to exercise them," Geoffrey suggested.

"Either way, they're making sure that those who are in power stay in power," Harry said.

"So what do we do?"

"First, we'll see if recalls are legal. Then, we find out whether Muggles have the right to vote. With the help of the Muggles, we'll be able to take down Fudge." Hermione ordered.

~*~

The portal door swung shut behind Harry and Snuffles as they stepped into a cozy little living room.

"Aunt Petunia?" Harry called out nervously, stepping over so that his leg was bumping against Snuffles hindquarters.

"Harry?" a voice called from the top of the stairs, followed by the sound of someone hurrying down them. "Oh Harry! I was praying that you would come to visit," Petunia exclaimed breathlessly when she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"I would have been here sooner, but things have been... complex," Harry explained as his aunt swept him up in a hug.

"That's alright, Harry. What matter is that you're here, now." Petunia soothed as she brushed a lock of Harry's hair out of this face in a motherly fashion. "So tell me, how are you? What did the doctors say? Can they fix your sight?" she queried anxiously as she guided Harry to the couch next to the window, Snuffles settling down at Harry's feet.

"Right now... no, but the doctors are hopeful that in a few years, they will be able to repair the damage," Harry assured in an encouraging tone. "They're making breakthroughs every day. It's only a matter of time.

"I'm so sorry, Harry." Petunia whispered, her eyes filled with tears as she wrung her hands. "I hope you can forgive me. If I had been stronger…"

"There is nothing to forgive," Harry replied firmly as he reached out blindly for his aunt's hands.

"That's what your Headmaster said, but it's..." sobbed Petunia.

"Shhhh. It's **not** your fault, Aunt Petunia. It's Vernon's." Harry countered in a firm tone of voice. "You did what you had to protect Dudley and me. If you want to blame someone, then blame the Ministry. They were supposes to monitor the house."

"But still…"

"It's wasn't your fault," Harry concluded firmly, not giving his aunt a chance to argue.

Petunia's lip quivered as she nodded her head, brushing a lock of Harry's hair out of his face, "Did I ever tell you how proud of you I am? For everything you've gone through, you're still so innocent, so noble, so forgiving. So much like Lily."

Harry's checks reddened as he blushed crimson. "So how are you doing, Aunt Petunia? How's Dudley?"

"Dudley…" Petunia sighed as she looked at the stairs that lead to the upper levels of the tower.

"He's not taking it well?'

"No. No, he's not." Petunia explained with a shake of her head. "He's blaming you for everything. Being pulled out of Smeltings, his father, me… everything." 

With a sigh, Harry nodded his head in understanding. "I was hoping…hoping that he would realize the truth once he was away from Vernon's influence."

"So was I," Petunia replied, "but his mind is too wrapped up with his father's lies to see anything beyond what his father had taught him."

The room descended in to silence as Harry and Petunia became lost in their own thoughts of life at Number Four, Privet Drive. The only sounds to be heard were those coming from Snuffles as he whimpered in his sleep.

"Your dog is very beautiful," Petunia mused, finding a safe topic they could discuss.

"Snuffles? Yeah he is," Harry replied, a smirk on his face. "The Headmaster gave him to me. He's part guide dog, part watchdog, and a complete holy terror if he doesn't like you. He's the biggest ham you'll ever meet. He can beg anything out of anyone.

"He must feel that I'm safe with you if he's falling asleep. Either that, or the house elves have been passing him too many doggy treats again, and he's sleeping it off. "

Petunia giggled as Snuffle rolled onto his back, his paws up in the air as he continued to sleep. "He's asleep on his back," she explained to Harry.

"Showing the family jewels to the world," Harry replied with a chuckle. "I'll have to tease him about that later," he mumbled to himself.

"So what's your plan for the future, Aunt Petunia?" Harry asked before Petunia had a chance to ask Harry what had just said.

"Your Headmaster is setting Dudley and me up with a new life someplace in the Americas or Australia," Petunias explained. "New names. New faces. New memories. It will be a fresh start for Dudley and me." Petunia suddenly turned away from Harry, her voice taking on a sad tone, "Only…"

"Only what?" Harry asked, hearing the pain that was in his aunt's voice.

"I won't be able to remember you or Lily," Petunia's voice cracked as she uttered those words. "I'll lose you too. It will be as if you didn't exist. That you were never part of my family."

"You're not losing us, Aunt Petunia," Harry assured with a sniffle. "You won't remember mum or me, but you'll never lose us. We're family."

~*~

"Come in, Harry. Come in," Dumbledore said, his eyes crinkled with glee as he sat behind his desk, a Muggle action figure toy in front of him. "No one else is here, so it's safe for you to transform, Sirius," He assured after the black dog had nosed the door shut.

In less time than it takes for a hummingbird to flap its wing, a tall handsome man appeared where the dog once was.

"Now why don't you two sit down? Would either of you care for a lemon drop?" The Headmaster asked, holding out a crystal bowl full of the tiny lemon candies.

"No," Sirius answered, a grimace showing plainly on his face as he glanced at the harmless looking candy. "No, thank you." Gently he guided Harry over to a chair that was sitting in the sunlight.

"Thank you, but no," Harry replied politely as he slid back into the seat. "Professor McGonagall said that you wanted to see me. Does it have to do with the sale?" Harry asked nervously, plucking at the fabric of his school robes.

"No. No, my dear boy," the Headmaster said quickly as he tried to reassure both of his guests before popping one of the candies into his mouth. "I've spoken to your teacher and we think it would be better for you to learn to read Braille as well as other skills for your condition."

"Braille?" Sirius started in confusion as he dragged a chair closer to Harry's. "What's Braille? And why should Harry be trained in it? Is it some form of magic or defense?"

Harry leaned to the side so that more of his body was in the sunlight. "No, Sirius. Braille is ... well…" Harry chewed on his bottom lip as he tried to think of a way to explain it to his godfather. "It's a written language for blind people. It composed of a series of raised dots. The person runs their fingers over the dots and somehow they can read it."

"Read it? You mean like read a book?" Sirius blinked in disbelief.

"Yes," Harry replied.

"But why? I mean, why does Harry need to learn it? I mean he's going to get his sight back. I know it won't be today or tomorrow, but he will get it back. And in the mean time, there are spells that will read to him," Sirius argued.

"And what if Harry wants to enter the Muggle world, Sirius?" Dumbledore asked patiently. "He can't use those spells if he's among Muggles."

"Well, I'll be there," Sirius retorted with conviction. "I'll read to him."

Harry shook his head in sad amusement, "Sirius, you can't be with me for the rest of my life, waiting on me hand and foot."

"Yes I can," Sirius replied automatically. "Anyway, why would you want to go into the Muggle world? I mean what do they have that you can't get here?"

"The Muggle world is friendlier to the blind," Harry said simply. "I assume that I would be taught other things besides Braille," Harry stated as he turned towards Dumbledore.

The Headmaster nodded his head. "Of course, Harry. Aside from learning to read and write in Braille, you'll be taught how to move around in unfamiliar places when you don't have a guide animal with you. Furthermore, you will undergo counseling."

Harry raised an eyebrow at Dumbledore's comment. "Counseling?"

"So you can learn what options there are for your future," Dumbledore explained carefully. "Also, you would be given the opportunity to deal with your anger and grief over your loss with a neutral party."

"Of course." Harry turned his face away from Dumbledore and Sirius so they could not see the pain on his face. "So who's going to teach me? One of the professors or someone from St Mungos?" he asked, his voice cracking from his emotions he held in check.

"Nikolas Baumgartner," Dumbledore replied with a glance over at Sirius. "He works with the blind in the Muggle communities."

"Nikolas Baumgartner," Sirius repeated the name in surprise. 

"Sirius?" Harry reached out towards the sound of his godfather's voice, his hand shaking with concern.

Sirius grasped Harry's hand. "It's okay, Harry," Sirius mollified reassuringly. "The name just took me by surprise."

"All right," Harry breathed out nervously. "Is he someone you know?"

"No. He's someone I've heard of," Sirius said with a shake of his head. "Someone from before you were born."

"Someone famous?" Harry asked curiously

"More like infamous," Sirius explained. "Nikolas Baumgartner…well it was a big scandal at the time. I guess I'll have to start at the beginning for you to understand."

"The Baumgartners are a pureblood family from across the Channel. The family is almost as old as the Potter line, and they are far richer than the Malfoys."

"In other words, they're really powerful," Harry interrupted.

"Exactly," Sirius agreed. "Now, the head of the Baumgartner family only had one son, Nikolas, and since Nikolas was the only male heir, Lord Baumgartner decided to raise his son at the family estate and have him educated by a series of tutors instead of sending him to one of the wizarding schools."

"When Nikolas turned seventeen, the family began the process of finding him a bride…"

"A bride!" Harry sputtered, outrage clearly written across his face. "You mean an arranged marriage, or were they trying to _buy_ him one?"

"Arranged. You have to understand, Harry, that at one time, it was quite common for the pureblood families, but it fell out of favor as more and more Muggleborns joined the wizard community," Dumbledore explained.

"Now, Nikolas's parents had found him the prefect pureblood bride for him, Larissa Chagall, I think that was her name. Everything was going as plan, and as Larissa's parents were about to sign the contract, their daughter came running in, shouting at her parents that she would marry a Muggleborn wizard before she would marry a Squib."

"Of course, the girl's parents were confused by her statement, but when they had calmed her down, she'd told them how she discovered he was a Squib. Of course the Baumgartners tried to deny the girl's statement, but with a visit from a Mediwizard, it was soon discovered that Nikolas was really a Squib."

"What? How? I mean he was a wizard. He could do magic." Harry sputtered, mystified by the turn of events in the story.

"No, he couldn't," Sirius countered with a shake of his head. "When he was born, his parents had discovered that he was a Squib. You have to understand, Harry that some wizards see the birth of a Squib as a sign that the family is loosing their magic, so they treat the family like they are Muggleborns or worse." 

"From what I remember, the family had a pendant that gave the wearer magic. They had given it to Nikolas, telling him it was something to protect him, and that he was never to take it off. He grew up never knowing he wasn't a wizard. And when Larissa, a girl that was to be his wife, asked him to see it…"

"He took it off," Harry said as he nodded his head in understanding. "So what happened to Nikolas?"

"That is where I come in," Dumbledore said suddenly, reminding the two younger men that he was still in the room with them. "Nikolas's great uncle, Raynor, who is a dear friend of mine, came to ask for my help."

"And you did,"

Dumbledore nodded his head. "Yes, I did. I have many contacts in the Muggle world, and was therefore able to help Nikolas to create a life there. One in which he has been successful and content."

"And now you're bringing him back. Bringing him back to teach me."


	9. I'm a Lumberjack

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the any of the material I used in this chapter (sorry I'm not giving you a hint.) If you've never heard of the group or seen one of their shows then you live a sad sad existence.

Bad Author Notes: I truly expect to be booed and hissed for this chapter. What can I say in my defense but that I was sick when I started it.

I'm a Lumberjack

By Lady FoxFire

September 12, 2004

Edit May 2, 2005 due to new rule

It was exactly one week after the Daily Prophet published the Special Edition on the sale of Harry Potter when Professor McGonagall escorted two gentlemen into the Headmaster's office.

The first was a tall, lean young man with sandy brown hair with an air of nervous energy, as if he was there for chastisement. The other man was nothing like the first. He was a squat little man with dirty grey hair that he had grown long to hide his bald spot. He wore a wrinkled suit that all but screamed government employee.

"Headmaster Dumbledore," the shorter of the two men said with an air of self-importance, "I'm Marlin Heath, representative of the Ministry for the sale of one Harry James Potter."

"Hi! I'm Alex O'Connell," the young man greeted cheerfully. "I'm from the Daily Prophet."

"Lovely," a young voice said from chair, a huge black dog seating at the person's feet, "another reporter. As if they haven't screwed up my life enough."

"What is _he_ doing here?" Mr. Heath snarled as he glared at Harry Potter.

"Having tea," Harry said simply taking a sip from the cup in his hand. The animal at his feet snorted as if to laugh.

"Harry Potter," the young reporter exclaimed with awe as he rubbed his hand down this pants leg before thrusting it out to shake the young hero's hand. "It's a honor to meet you!"

The massive dog raised to his feet and using it's nose nudged Harry's hand so that he would reach out towards the other man.

Grasping Harry's outstretched hand; O'Connell viscously shook it, talking endlessly as he did. "No one will ever believe I've met _the_ Harry Potter. I mean this was to be just simple report. Nobody wanted to do it so they assigned me to it, since I'm the newest member of the staff. I was to simply go in, get the info and out again. I never thought I would have the chance to meet you. Do you think I could get your autograph or maybe an interview?"

"Ahh… well..." Harry stumbled for an answer.

A loud snort came from Heath. "You can beg for an interview from his new owners after he's been sold."

"Actually, an interview might be a good idea," Harry said with a smirk on his face. "It would give me the chance to let the wizard community know about my feelings on what's going on, about the Ministry's incompetence. How the Ministry allowed my uncle to destroy my sight."

Alex's eyes grew wide, either from Harry's words or from the fact he was going to interview the Boy-Who-Lived.

"I forbid it!" Heath's face turning red as he sputtered at Harry's words.

"I don't believe that's within your power to do so," Dumbledore intervened in a voice that sent shivers through everyone who heard it. "As Harry's current legal guardian, I see no reason why I shouldn't allow him to give an interview, if he so wishes it. Now, shall we get to business?"

The Ministry official glared at the Headmaster and at Harry who smiled smugly in the direction of him.

"Fine," Heath spat through clenched teeth as he sat down in the chair farthest from Harry and Dumbledore. "Let's conclude our business so you can let the little boy get his _interview_."

A sweet grandfatherly type smile appeared on Dumbledore's face as he pulled out a folder from his desk. "In the event of my death or indisposition, Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall will assume my role as legal guardian of Harry Potter. She will also assume all my role concerning Le sang de Magie." Dumbledore shuffled the papers in his hands. "Now, concerning the conditions of the Le sang de Magie, the bidding will begin one week from today at precisely nine in the morning. Bidding will be accepted for a period of no less than one year and no longer than five years."

The muscles in Heath's neck tightened as he listened to the Headmaster's words. O'Connell's quill busily scratched across the parchment. "I believe that your time limit is a bit excessive," Heath stated as his eyes narrowed. "_Minister Fudge_ wanted this concluded before the end of term."

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at the Ministry representative's statement. "I see," he replied as he looked down at the paper. "However, I believe that it will take a longer period of time for us to find a suitable family for Mr. Potter. After all, we don't want the public crying that the sale was unfair or heaven forbid, _rigged_. "

"No," Heath said through clutched teeth. "We wouldn't want that."

"Of course not," Dumbledore said with a small smile as he turned his attention back to business. "Bidders may only place one bid, once every seven days. Couples will be treated as a single bidder and no multi-owners or group bids are allowed."

"Sir?" O'Connell spoke up as he stopped his note taking. "Does that mean families can't place bids? If my parents bid does that mean me and my brother and sisters can't bid?"

"That's a very good question, Alex," Dumbledore said in a kindly old school teacher voice. "This rule simply states that a group of people may not come together and _pool_ their money in the hope of winning. It does not stop family members from bidding against one another."

O'Connell nodded his head in understanding before quickly writing down what Dumbledore had just explained.

"Shall we continue?" Dumbledore asked after taking a sip from his teacup.

"Yes, shall we?" Heath said in a bitter tone, his lip curled back in a snarl. "Unlike others, I have _important_ things to do and places to be."

"Very well, then," Dumbledore said as he lifted the page over. "All bids will be placed anonymously, and each Sunday, the Daily Prophet will publish the top hundred bids. Furthermore, the amount of each bid will be transferred from the bidder's account into a special account till the end of the auction."

"Umm, excuse me, Headmaster," O'Connell spoke up nervously as he interrupted the Headmaster once again. "Why are you having the money transferred at this time? I mean, I thought that was something that happened at the end. What will happen if the bidder suddenly needs the money say for an emergency?"

"Another excellent question, young Alex, I'm pleased that you brought that up," Dumbledore said with a smile. "You must understand that in the past, it was not uncommon for the winner suddenly to have no funds to cover the winning bid, though they may still demand their winnings. By requiring the amount now, I am assuring that all parties will be satisfied at the conclusion of the auction. As for your other question, if necessary, the bidder can withdraw from the bidding process at any time. They may later re-enter the auction once they have the necessary funds, and once they have explained their reason for their sudden withdraw to my satisfaction."

"What!" Heath asked in outrage. "Why should **they** have to explain why they are withdrawing?"

"Because I demand it," Dumbledore said in a tone, which cause those to hear it to shiver. "That is why they will explain it. And if I don't like their reason, they will not be permitted to re-enter the auction."

"There will be many who will object to your rules," Heath explained as if he was telling something to a simple child. "They'll demand that the Ministry do something."

"That is the Ministry's problem, not mine," Dumbledore said in a little smug tone. "Did I explain everything to your satisfaction, Alex?" Dumbledore asked as he turned his attention to the young reporter.

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Alex said as he finished writing his notes.

"And the minimum bid?" Heath snarled as he looked at his pocket watch. "I would suggest five hundred galleons with increments of fifty."

Dumbledore raised and eyebrow at the amount Heath suggested, a low dangerous growl emanated from the dog at Potter's feet.

"I had another amount in mind," the Headmaster said, his eyes narrowing as he stared the Ministry official. "Bidding will start at two hundred fifty thousand galleons, and will be increased in increments of a five thousand galleons."

Heath sputtered in shock. "That's outrageous! The _brat_ isn't worth that much! In the whole history of Le sang de Magie, no one has every sold for such an amount!"

"And no one has ever survived the Killing Curse before," Harry said smugly

Heath's face grew red as he pounded his fist on the arm of the chair. "The Ministry won't stand for this! We demand you change the conditions of the sale!"

The Headmaster leaned back in his chair, his eyes fixed on the Ministry representative, making the man squirm in his chair. "While the Ministry may be unwilling to _enforce_ this arcadic law, it does not mean that they have the power to dictate how this auction will be handled."

After watching Heath squirm for a few minutes Dumbledore leaned forward and continued on. "Now where was I... Ah yes, I will conclude the sale when I have determined that there will be no more bids being placed or when no new bidder has entered the top fifty bids. At that time, I will end the auction and, I will choose from the ten highest bidders, the candidate who would best be able to care for and protect Mr. Potter. If none of them meet the requirements, I will choose from the next ten."

O'Connell raised his hand nervously, "Ah sir? Isn't this going against the rules of Le sang de Magie?"

The Headmaster smiled kindly at the young reporter. "The whole point of the Le sang de Magie is to find a family that would be able to care for and protect the injured party, not to make a profit off of another's disability."

The sound of teeth grinding could be heard from Heath. "Was there anything else Headmaster?" he said through clenched teeth.

"Let's see," Dumbledore said in a thoughtful tone as he tapped his chin in a thoughtful manner. "I can't think of anything. Can you, Harry?"

"A number of my fellow Gryffindors wanted to know if Muggleborns could bid, sir," Harry said as he ran his fingers through the black dog's fur.

"Ah yes," Dumbledore said, the corners of his eyes crinkling with amusement, "the bidding is not limited to pureblood families. Any witch or wizard may place a bid, if they have the funds."

Standing up and straightening his suit, Heath stared down at Dumbledore and Harry with contempt as O'Connell busily finish his notes. "Was that everything?"

"Yes, I believe so," Dumbledore said as he stood up. "Now, why don't I show you out, while Young Mr. Potter and O'Connell have their interview?" Dumbledore walked to the office door and held it open for Heath as the Headmaster wordlessly implied a clear message of 'get out.'

The Daily Prophet reporter watched the headmaster and the Ministry representative leave the office, leaving him alone with the Boy-Who-Lived and the Grim-like dog. Swallowing nervously, O'Connell turned his attention to Harry.

Dragging his chair closer to the boy, Alex opened his mouth to ask a question, only to shut it with a click of his teeth. He gulped, opened his mouth once again, and shut it without making a sound.

Harry chuckled softly, "I promise I won't bite, and neither will Snuffles, unless you get him mad."

Alex blushed as he chewed on his bottom lip in embarrassment. "Right. It's just... well... Umm," Alex O'Connell licked his lips nervously. "I've never interviewed anyone before…I mean any one important. I wasn't really expecting it, expecting a chance to interview you!"

Harry shook his head in amusement. "I'm no one important. It was my mum who defeated old Molywort, not me."

Alex started to choke on his own spit when he heard Harry's name for the He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. "Molywort!"

"Hmm yes. It was either that or Moldynappy." Harry chuckled. "What would you like to know?" His hand reaching out for his dog, which placed his head in his master's lap.

"Right. Umm yeah. Well... I guess the entire wizard world would like to know about your accident. You know, the one that took your sight." Alex said nervously

"There was no accident." Harry's voice becoming bitter and hard. "My uncle destroyed my sight on propose," Harry stated calmly before proceed to tell his tale.

O'Connell's face grew paler and paler as Harry related in terrible detail his life at the hands of his uncle. "But... But... Why? How? Why didn't anyone stop this!"

"You should be asking those questions to the Ministry and my relatives," Harry said with a shrug.

O'Connell nodded in shock. "Of course. They'll probably be answered during the trail."

"There won't be a trail." Harry said calmly. "The Ministry refuses to accept the charges I had asked the Headmaster to file on my behalf. The Ministry is refusing even to investigate my charges."

"But why? Why won't they?" O'Connell asked in outrage. "I mean, what you're claiming is a serious accusation. I'm surprised that they're not even willing to _investigate_."

"Maybe they're trying to cover something up," Harry offered. "They are not willing to investigate my charges. Then, they suddenly revive an ancient law, one that hasn't been used in centuries. Then, add in the fact the _Minster Fudge_ wants this matter settle quickly, and what do we get?"

"A political cover-up of the highest order," O'Connell said grimly.

Harry nodded his head in agreement. "Now, the next question is how far back this cover-up goes. Could it go as far back as the war? Could Death Eaters have been freed while innocent men and women were sent to prisons without trail?"

Alex's breath became ragged. "Do you have any proof of this?"

Harry leaned forward in his chair. "I do."

O'Connell closed his eyes. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" he said in a panicked voice. "Harry, I'm not a reporter. I mean I am but... shit, this was my first professional job. I... I... I don't know what to do."

"If I give you the information, will you look at it, quietly?" Harry asked.

"I can't promise you anything," O'Connell stated.

"I'm not asking you to," Harry replied.

"Ok." O'Connell took a couple of deep calming breaths. "Umm...I think it might be best if we left this subject for now." Harry nodded his head in understanding. "Ah... Ok... Umm...What is your feeling about Le sang de Magie?"

"I fear for the wizarding community," Harry said simply.

"Let me get this straight," Alex said in confusion, "You fear _for_ the wizard community?"

Harry nodded his head. "In the Muggle world, a person like me is just handicapped, but in the wizard world, I cease be a person—I am now looked upon as mere breeding stock. Breeding stock sold to the highest bidder and then passed along to others like a common whore. If it can happen to me, it can happen to _anyone_, no matter how rich or poor that person may be. It could be something as simple as losing you thumb on you wand hand, or losing the power of speech—you just became a non-person fit to be sold at auction.

"As long as that's law is in the book, there will be more people sold."

* * *

"You **willingly** gave a reporter an interview?" Ron said in disbelief, his fork raised halfway to his mouth forgotten.

Harry carefully reached his glass of pumpkin juice. "Yes Ron," Harry said with a sigh for the thirteenth time.

"But... but why?" Ron stammered. "You remember what happened last time."

"I know Ron, but Alex...he was different. He's nothing like Skeeter," Harry tried to explain.

"But he's a reporter!" Ron explained drawing the attention of other students who were enjoying their dinner.

"Ronald, I suggest you drop the subject," Ginny growled at her brother, her steak knife pointed threatly at him.

Ron gulped noisily as he nodded his head; his eyes never straying from the knife his little sister was wielding.

"And here I thought food was the only way to shut him up," Hermione said, never looking up from the book of wizard law she was reading.

"I'm missing something, aren't I?" Harry said, confusion evident in his voice.

"Nothing to worry about," Ginny stated as she patted Harry's arm reassuringly as she gave her brother the evil eye.

"Yeah, nothing to worry about, "Ron said as he tried to shrink in on himself, his eyes on the knife his sister was welding. "Just another boring dinner at Hogwarts. Nothing at all going on."

As Ron finished his sentence, there was a disturbance at the Slytherin table as Draco suddenly jumped up onto the table, his schools robes changed into a rough plaid, long-sleeved shirt, heavy denim pants and work boots covered in dried mud. The Great Hall grew silent as they started at Malfoy in wonder. With a smile that reminded the older students of Lockhart, Draco began to sing.

_**edited due to FF rule about songs. To see the prank please visit or join my yahoo group at http/groups**. _

As those words were sung, a series of pops echoed across the Great Hall so followed by a number of girly screams from the male members of the House of Slytherin.

Every male member of Slytherin was wear woman's panties and bra in a while range of colors and styles. But the men weren't the only ones affected; the girls grew hand bar mustaches. And for those with low cut robe, thick chest hair could be seen.

Even the head of Slytherin was affected. Professor Snape was now dressed only in Slytherin-green thong panties and spaghetti strap bra. The bra barely covered what could only be described as a 'huge set of knockers.'

"**WEASLEY!**"

"It wasn't us!" the twin on the left side of the table said as he stared at Snape's massive breasts.

"But I wish it was," the twin on the right stated with awe in his voice.

"Are you to tell me you had nothing to do with… with this!" Snape sputtered.

The Weasley twins slowly shook their heads.

Snape's head snapped back in shock. Slowly the man looked across the sea of students, trying to find the guilty party. Snape's eyes narrowed, his lips pulled back in a grimace "Black!" he hissed softly with realization. "**Potter!**" he bellowed as he stared at the boy and his dog.

"Sir?" Harry replied his confusion evident in his voice.

"You did this!" Snape shouted across the hall as he waved an arm towards his students.

"Did what, sir?" Harry asked as he pulled off his sunglasses and rubbed his sightless eyes.

"It is impossible for Potter to have done this," Professor McGonagall said from her chair down the table. "The child has been with Perfects and teachers or in the his common room the whole day."

"And for the record sir, me and Snuffles…" Harry started to say.

"Snuffles and I" Hermione corrected.

Harry sighed. "Snuffles and I have been together the whole time. After the incident with Professor Trelawney, the Headmaster made me promise to take Snuffles everywhere. So, it's impossible for us to have pulled off whatever just happened."

Snape stared at Harry and his dog. His mouth opened. And closed. And opened again. And shut again. All without a sound coming out of it. Slowly Snape turned towards Remus. "**You!**" he said pointing his finger at his fellow teacher.

Professor Remus raised an eyebrow at Snape's accusation. "Use you head, Severus. I'm much too mature for such childish pranks," Remus said as he tried to keep from smiling. "Besides, when would I have time? If I'm not teaching, I'm with the Headmaster. I don't have the time to pull off such a prank that a Marauder would have envied."

"Severus, dear," Madam Hooch nodded to his chest, "you might want to tuck yourself back in before you fall out completely."

Snape let out a girlish squeak as his arms flew up to cover his breast.

With his arms crossed over his breast Snape fled the Great Hall followed by the Slytherin students in a mad rush.

"Could someone tell me what I missed?" Harry asked.

* * *

The cloaked figure kneeled in front of the Dark Lord, her arms crossed over her chest as the figure bowed even farther.

Voldemort gazed at the kneeling figure, yet his eyes had a far away look as if he did not really see his loyal servant. Many minutes passed as both figures remained unmoving, before finally, the cracking of a log in fireplace as it broke up into hot coals snapped the Dark Lord out of his thoughts.

Straightening out of his slumped position, Voldemort turned his attention to the figure. "Arise," Voldemort commanded in a powerful voice.

As the figure arose from the kneeling position, the movement of the figure's robe betrayed a shapely leg and short skirt.

"Do you know why I have summoned you?" Voldemort asked

"No, my Lord," the figure answered in a voice of a young woman.

"I have a job for you, my dark butterfly." If a snake could purr, it would sound exactly like the Dark Lord as he said those words.

"I am yours to command, my Lord," The cloaked woman said with a bow of her head.

"I want you to get close to Potter, make him trust you, even love you if possible," Voldemort said leaning forward in his throne. "And if Malfoy's plan fails—undoubtedly, it will—I want you to bring the boy to me, in one piece if possible."


	10. Goosed And Dog

Disclaimer: Why do I put a disclaimer up with every chapter? Why as why? We all know I don't own the Harry Potter worlds and that I don't make any money off of this fic.

Bad Author Notes: I'm too brain dead to write any notes for this chapter but I will thank all my editors who somehow was able to make the mess I created and form it into a readable chapter.

**Goosed And Dog**

By Lady FoxFire

April 26, 2005

"I can't believe that the Headmaster cancelled classes because of a silly childish prank," Hermione growled as she dropped her book bag onto the floor with a thump; allowing herself to plop into the chair.

"It's not **fair**!" she exclaimed, pounding the arm of the chair with her fist.

Harry sighed as he shook his head. "Hermione, Dumbledore didn't have a choice. The Slytherins refuse to leave their rooms, and Snape is too busy finding an antidote to teach. Besides, it's only until the prank has been reversed, if it can be."

"I hate to say it, mate, but I have to agree with Hermione on this," Ron said as he glanced up from his Quidditch magazine. "We've all been forced to attend classes when we were affected by a prank. Remember second year, when everyone had green and silver spots? _We_ still had to go to classes and eat our meals in the Great Hall with them! Why should _Slytherins_ be allowed to hide in the dungeons?"

Hermione's eyes sparkled with pride as she stared at Ron. "You see, Harry? I was right! Even _Ron_ agrees with me."

Ron nodded his head reluctantly. "Of course I do. Besides, no one was able to get a picture of them at dinner last night, and I won't mind snatching a shot or two over my toast."

Hermione eyes grew wide as she realized what Ron had just said. "**Ronald Bilius Weasley**!"

"Yes, Hermione Jane Granger?" Ron replied, fluttering his eyes exaggeratedly as his voice turned into the sugar-sweet, innocent tone that the Weasley children had used on their mother whenever they wanted something or were in trouble.

"I... I... I can't believe you said that!" Hermione sputtered in outrage.

"Why not?" Harry asked. "Ron's right after all."

Hermione's jaw dropped as she stared at Harry. "How can you say that?"

"Well, because the Slytherins always getting preferential treatment and because some day, I _will_ see again," Harry said, the palpable determination in his voice enough to convince the stoutest skeptic. "It may be years or decades from now, but I will see again, and I want to see it when I get better. I especially want to see Malfoy do the Lumberjack Song."

"Harry—" Hermione began softly as she chewed on her bottom lip.

"No, Hermione," Harry turned towards her, her reflection looking back at her in Harry's sunglasses. "I know what the doctors said. I know they said that there was nothing they could do _right now_, but I have to keep hoping. If I don't..." his voice trailed off as he bowed his head in thought.

Snuffles whimpered and nudged Harry's hand for comfort.

"I _will_ see again." Harry said raising his head and straightening his shoulders.

The trio sat in silence as their classmates continued bustling around the common room.

"So, who do you think pulled the prank?" Ron asked finally, breaking the heavy silence that had settled between them. "After all, we know that my brothers didn't do it. And I know Snuffles was with us all last night so _he_ couldn't have do it either."

"How do we know they didn't do it?" Hermione asked.

Ron blinked at Hermione. "'Cause they said so."

Hermione raised an eyebrow at Ron's assertion. "And you actually _believe_ them?" Crossing her arms over her chest.

"Do I hear someone talking about us?" One the twins asked, appearing suddenly behind Hermione.

"I do believe you are right, brother of mine. It seems as that Ronniekin's girlfriend doesn't believe us."

"I'm not his girlfriend!"

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"Methinks they protest too much," Harry said with a smirk on his face as he butchered the Shakespearian quote.

"For shame, for shame." The twins admonished Hermione and their brother with hands to their hearts. "You need to learn to admit your love for each other. And _all_ of you should know by this time that we _always_ take credit where credit is due," the twins explained as they sat down on the arms of Hermione's chair.

"And if we _were_ involved in the prank, we would have gladly admitted our contribution."

"Yeah, yeah, you've made your point. Now, what did you wankers want?" Ron asked, glaring at his brothers as they leaned closer to Hermione.

"Tsk! Tsk! Tsk!" The twins scolded. "What would mother say if she heard you using such language?"

"And in front of a _lady_, no less." The brother on Hermione's left side lamented as he reached down, clasped Hermione's hand into his own, and raised it towards his lips.

Ron's eyes narrowed as glared at his brothers. "What do you want?" he said through clutch teeth.

"We came to talk to _Harry_." The brother on Hermione's right side said as his twin looked down at Hermione with soulful eyes.

"About what?" Hermione asked as she ripped her hand form the twin's grasp, got out of her seat and went as sat down on the arm of Ron's chair.

"You do realize that I am _blind_. I am neither deaf nor dumb," Harry commented, perceptibly hardening his voice.

"Sorry, Harry," Hermione replied, ducking her head in embarrassment.

"Sorry, mate," Ron said plucking at loose thread on his robes. "It's just that they're... they're my brothers. You know how they are."

"Suspicious, isn't he?"

"And for no reason whatsoever," the other twin replied. "I'm mean, sure we've played a few harmless pranks on him in the past."

"A few hundreds, but after all he is our 'ickle, baby brother."

"Oh, enough, the two of you!" Angelina snapped she as stalked in front of the twins before their brother had a chance to reply to their teasing.

"But, Angelina..."

"Don't 'Angelina' me! If we let you Weasleys continue your teasing, we'll never get a chance to talk to Harry."

The twins looked chastised.

"Whipped," Ron said under his breath.

"_Ronald_!" Hermione barked, adopting the same threatening tone Angelina had just used.

Angelina raised an eyebrow at Hermione, who only nodded in return confirming that both of them had taken Mrs. Weasley's crash course on handling Weasley men.

"What can I do for you, Angelina?" Harry asked.

"It's more like 'what can we do for you,'" Angelina retorted, her eyes boring pointedly into his as she sat down in a chair across from Harry.

"So, what _can_ you do for me?" Harry asked hastily.

"After your attack in the dungeon, the group of us—" Angelina began to explain.

"Group of us?"

"Seventh years," Angelina waved at the seventh year Gryffindors surrounding them. "As I was saying we started talking among ourselves about..."

"We're your new bodyguards," Katie Bell, a fellow chaser interjected Angelina, earning an evil glare from her teammate.

"What?"

"Bodyguards?" Harry said in confusion. "But I have Snuffles. He's my bodyguard."

"As I was saying before I was _rudely interrupted_," Angelina snipped as she shot Katie another dirty look, "we started to talk among ourselves and we realized that you need more protection than what your dog and a bunch of fifth years can provide. No offense to those who have been helping you, but they don't know enough about defensive and offensive magic if they run into trouble."

"And seventh years do," Hermione commented.

"Exactly," Angelina replied. "We have talked to Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore, and they're both in agreement with us. Seventh year Gryffindors will be providing you an escort for whenever you're out of the tower and not with a teacher. We'll escort you to classes, to the library and to meals."

"Your plan won't work," Ron said. "It will only put Harry in even greater danger!"

"What!" Angelina exclaimed. "What you mean!"

Ron folded his hands in front of him. Cocking his head to the side, Ron replied simply, "Polyjuice,"

"Oh," Hermione said in an understanding tone as she looked down at Ron in pride.

"What does a potion have to do with this?" Angelina growled in confusion as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Someone could use polyjuice to trick me into believing they were one of you," Harry explained. "Then they could simply lead me away."

Many of the older student's shoulders slumped in disappointment.

"We didn't think of that," Katie said.

"Can we set up some type of security? Maybe a password? Just don't go with anyone who doesn't know the password," Patricia Stimpson, the Hermione of the seventh years suggested. "We could change it every day."

"Won't work," Lee Jordon said, as he chewed on his fingernail. "Remember Black? He was able to get the password."

"Might I make a suggestion?" a voice said from behind the older students.

"Professor Remus!" Harry exclaimed partly in glee and partly in relief while Snuffles let out a couple of yips in greeting.

The seventh years parted to allow their teacher into their group.

"Professor Lupin," Hermione said calling attention to herself. "Is there any word of those involved with last night's prank?" Hermione glance over at the twins, " Have they been caught? Have the pranks been reversed?"

"No and no," Remus replied as he summoned a chair over to him. "We're still attempting to discover how they pulled off the prank. We not even sure whether they used a potion, spell or a combination of the two."

"Thank you, Professor. Now, while I know a number of us are concerned with the latest prank, _we_ are here to discuss how to protect Harry," Angelina stated. "You said you had an idea, Professor."

"Snuffles," Remus said with a smirk.

"Snuffles?"

"The dog!"

Remus nodded his head. "A little known fact is that while polyjuice changes the appearance of a person it does not totally change that person's scent."

"But... but... but we're studying it right now. There's nothing in any of the books about that!" Patricia stated.

"You _won't_ find this in any text book for a simple reason." Remus stated almost smugly. "Humans have a horrible scene of smell. Polyjuice morphs are enough to fool a person but not an animal."

"But how do you know this?" Patricia asks eyes the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.

"In part, you could thank my condition and my misspent years as a Marauder. I'm sure that you will find that with age, life will teach you a great number of things you won't find in books, Miss Stimpson," Remus explained with a twitch of his lips.

"Like what happens when you add a cat hair to polyjuice," Ron mumbled, earning him a smack across the head from Hermione.

"So we use the mutt to check out the guards," Angelina said

"And set up password system," Remus continued. "Remember, anyone, even animals, can be fooled. There are others out there that know of this particular flaw in the potion. They could use polyjuice in conjunction with a potion to change their scent."

"Right. So it's a password and the dog. Now all we need to do is to get the mutt to sniff each one of us," Angelina stated as she glared at Snuffles with a look that asked 'why are you laying there, get to work!'"

Rising to his feet, Snuffles started to walk around the students gather there, sniffing at their hands or legs. That was until he was passing behind Angelina.

Angelina let out a squeal that brought the attention of the entire common room upon her and those gathered with her. "**YOUR DOG JUST GOOSED ME!**"

"Snuffles! Bad dog," Harry chided in a disciplining tone even as he tried no to laugh.

After a few other things were settled, the seventh years drifted away, leaving Ron, Herm, and Harry with Remus and Snuffles.

"So what can we do for you, Professor?" Hermione asked in a tone that would make an executive secretary proud.

Remus rose out of his chair and stood before the fire. "I need to talk to Harry," Remus said soberly, as he gazed into the flickering flames. He turned to look at Ron and Hermione, his eyes bearing greater weight than they'd ever seen before. "Alone."

Ron and Hermione shared a concern look. "All right, Professor," Ron acquiesced as he rose from his chair. "We'll be on the other side of the common room if you need us, Harry. Come on, Snuffles."

"Snuffles can stay," Remus said, glancing down at his old friend. "It concerns him, too."

Remus's piercing amber eyes followed Ron and Hermione into the opposite corner of the room before pulling out his wand and silently started to cast a few spells.

"Don't want anyone listening in, Professor?" Harry asks as he ran his fingers through Snuffles' fur.

"How did you know?" Remus asked, eyeing Harry curiously.

Harry grinned. "The sound is muted," he said with a nodded to those around him. "I can still hear them but it's like there is something between us."

"When you lose one sense you start to depend on the others more," Remus said as he starts down in this chair once again.

Harry nodded his head in agreement. "What's going on, Professor?" Harry asked cautiously.

"First off, you can call me Remus or Moony. You're not in class right now. Second, you can tell me who pulled the prank last night." Remus said as he pulled his chair closer to Harry's

"As I said yesterday, Snuffles and I couldn't have done it." Harry said while Snuffles nodded his head, his ears flopping in every direction.

"Don't try to deceive me, Harry," Remus growled as he shot Snuffles a look. "Your father wasn't good at it and neither are you. You may not be directly involved but you know who is it. And I want their name."

"And if I don't want to?" Harry asked innocently.

Remus blinked at Harry in shock. "Harry..." Remus sputtered before could collect himself. "Harry, I don't think you realize how serious this is. We need to know how they did it so that we can make sure that no one can do it again."

"Think about it, now. If someone else learns how this was done before we can set up wards to stop it, think about what they could accomplish. They could drug the entire school, poison the teachers, and leave the school defenseless."

"Moony, you don't have to worry about it," Harry said in the same tone of voice that one would use to calm a child. "I took care of it."

Remus stared at Harry in bewilderment. He opened his mouth to say something when a loud cracked echo across the common room.

Remus threw himself out of his chair, his wand in his hands as he stood between Harry and the source of the noise.

There in the center of the room with numerous wands pointed at him was Dobby and in Dobby's hands was a large package wrapped in brown butcher-block paper.

Slowly the students began to put their wands away, some with a nervous laugh.

Dobby stood still unit the last wand was lowered. With a sigh of relief, Dobby stood up tall and called out, "Mr. Gred? Mr. Forge?"

Many of the Gryffindors in the common room shifted their gaze to the twins, who looked at each other in confusion before turning back at Dobby. "Here!" the twins called out as they each raised a hand.

Dobby's eyes narrowed as he stared at the notorious pranksters. "You not Mr. Gred or Mr. Forge. You are Fred and George. You no plan prank on Dobby."

"They're really are Gred and Forge," Ron spoke up. "It's a play on my brothers' names. They find it amusing."

Dobby looked at Ron, then at the twins and then back at Ron. "If Mr. Harry Potter's Wheezy is sure," Dobby said causing a number of Gryffindors to giggle and Ron's ears to turn bright red, "then Dobby has a package for Gred and Forge."

The twins once again looked at each other before turning to Dobby. "What is it?" they asked suspiciously.

"Dobby promise not to tell anyone what was in package."

Remus quickly removed the charms surrounding Harry and himself. "Did this person have a name?" Remus said as he stepped in front of Harry as if to protect him from the package. His wand once again in his hand, his eyes locked on the package in the house elf's hands.

Dobby nodded his head rigorously; somehow his tower of hats remained on his head. "The person who gave Dobby package said his name was Han Solo."

"Han Solo!" a dark skin boy who was a third year cried out. "I wonder where Princess Leia is?"

"Cell number 2187, waiting for execution," a female voice called out.

"Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope!" A boy said in squeeky feminine voice, a few feet from where Harry stood.

"Luke, I am your father," a tall first year boy said, lowering his voice as he looked menacing at his friend who was standing next to him.

"Noooooo!" the boy's friends replied as he clutched his right hand and fell on to the couch

"Harrison Ford is so yummy!" A sixth year girl mused wistfully as her wizard born friends stared at her in confusion.

"Harrison who?" One of her friends asked.

The boy for who started this dramatization stepped forward, squaring his shoulders back and said, "The dog? You are named after the dog?" as he tried to imitate the accent of the character from the movie

"I've got a lot of fond memories of that dog." The tall first year boy, who did a passing Darth Vader, said with a glare.

"Da daa Da daa Dun dun Da daa Dun dun ah….."

Some of the Gryffindors were giggling and laughing and the small group began to sing the theme song associated with Indian Jones, while the rest of the students stared at them in confusion.

The number students who were Muggle-born or raised by Muggles gazed sympathetically at those confused and shot each other knowing looks before saying as a group, "Wizard bores!" breaking down into laughter.

"Professor? Would it be possible to have a Gryffindor movie night?" One of the young women asked in a high society tone. "After all, one must encourage those less fortunate to learn the ways of the Force."

"Well then they have to learn about Indiana Jones too."

"Jaws! Dunu… Dunu… dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun... dununu nu"

"In space, no one can hear you scream."

"Only if we can forget about Alien Three," someone called out. "I can't believe they killed off Ripley. She was hot!"

Remus looked at the group of Muggle-born students argue among themselves about movies. "Right," he said simply as he turned back to the Dobby.

"You said his name was Han Solo?" Remus said in disbelief.

Dobby nodded his head rigorously; somehow his tower of hats remained on his head. "Yes, Professor Lupin, sir. Han Solo said it was a surprise. Han Solo said it was from one master to another. Han Solo asked Dobby to bring this package to Messrs. Gred and Forge."

Remus's eyes narrowed, "Dobby? Do you know what's in the package?"

"Dobby knows," Dobby replied. "Dobby would not bring bad thing that could hurt Harry Potter, sir, or Harry Potter, sir's, friends."

"You're starting to sound like Moody, Remus," Harry said as he stepped next to Moony, Snuffles at his heels. "Dobby would never endanger any of us, unless he's trying to protect us."

Remus turned and looked down at Harry. "Open it."

"Are you sure?" The twins looked at Remus nervously, then at the package once again.

Remus turned and looked at the twins. "I'm sure. I have a hunch that this Han Solo character is our mysterious prankster."

"Really!" the twins squealed before they practically attacked Dobby to retrieve the package, causing the small house elf to squeak in surprise.

The twins quickly ripped the brown packaged paper off the package and had torn the box open. Soon, they were so throwing handfuls of multi-color tissue paper out of the box. More and more and more tissue paper flew out of the box in streaming showers until the twins were surrounded by a sea of colorful tissue paper.

Finally in frustration Remus stepped in and pulled the twins away from the box. Pulling out his wand, Remus tapped the box and said "Achoo!"

The twins looked at Remus oddly, to which Remus shrugged his shoulder and said, "Old joke" before allowing the twin access to the package once again.

The twin instantly plunged once again into the box and soon pulled something out. "A recorder!" they cried awed as together they pressed the brass square on the device to activate it.

Instantly the common room was transformed into the Great Hall and Draco began to sing.

"Is there a chance I could get a copy of that?" Harry called out over Draco's singing. "You never know someday I might be able to watch it and I would love to have a copy when that day comes."

"I want a copy too!"

"Me too!"

"Yeah!"

The common room erupted into cries of demands for a copy or photos of the infamous prank.

"The Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes will be more than pleased to offer an assortment of items for your pranking and entertainment," the twins said as one, with mischievous grins on their faces.

Remus walked over and plucked the recorder form the twins' hands. "I don't believe that will be happening," He said as he deactivated the device.

"But, Moony," the twins whined in confusion as they looked upon their hero.

"No," Remus said as he slipped the recorder into a pocket in his robes. "Use of recorders is strictly prohibited inside of Hogwarts. Besides, do you honestly want Snape to know you have a copy of what happened or face a lawsuit from the Malfoys?"

"Yes!" They said in unison

"It's the greatest prank of our generation—" The brother on the left began.

"—It must be saved for the future." The other brother finished.

"Besides, it's not like either one of them can do anything about it," The first brother said.

The other brother grinned and picked up where his brother left off. "True, Professor Snape might be able to assign us detention—"

"—And take away points—"

Those in the Gryffindor common room were quickly in tranced by the verbal tennis game the twins were conducting.

"—He'll try to make our life miserable—"

"—But he's already trying to do that."

"As for the Malfoys—"

"—The law is on our side—"

"A recording made in a public place—"

"—Which the Great Hall is—"

"—Is the property of the owner of the recorder—"

"—And will be treated as if it were a memory stored in a Pensieve."

A number of jaws dropped at the twins' knowledge of the law.

"It seems like the two of you have this all figured out," Remus said eyeing the twins carefully.

"When one enters the business of pranking—"

"—One must know all the laws."

"That may be, but the rules of Hogwarts clearing state that you, as _students_, are not permitted to have recorders," Remus countered.

"But why?" Someone whined.

"How would you feel if someone placed a recorder in your shower?"

"Oh."

Remus turned back to the twins. "Talk to the Headmaster. Perhaps he will give it to you when this term is over." Remus then turned to Harry. "Harry, we will finish our discussion later. I want answers."

Remus then turned and walked out of the Gryffindor tower.

* * *

While everyone was watching the Weasley twins and Remus, Dobby snuck up next to Harry and Snuffles.

"Dobby?" Harry asked softly

"Yes, Mr. Harry Potter, sir?" Dobby replied his ears drooping slightly.

"Han Solo?"

Dobby looks down at the floor as he tugged on his ear nervously. "Yes."

"Cool!" Harry said with a huge grin on his face and he rock back and forth on the balls of his feet.

* * *

"I can't believe that Moony took it!" Ron growled in frustration as he plopped back into his chair he was sitting in earlier.

"He had to Ron," Hermione said as she sat down. "It was his job as a professor. Anyway, as Prefect I would have been required to tell McGonagall about it.

Ron glared at Hermione.

"You didn't tell McGonagall about the prank we pulled on Trelawney, "Harry pointed out.

"Yeah!" Ron exclaimed. "You didn't tell her about that!"

"That was different," Hermione replied.

"Really? How is it different from Fred and George having a record of the lumberjack prank and our recorder of the grim prank?" Ron asked as he leaned forward in his chair.

"It just is," Hermione retorted in a huff. "Anyway, no knows we have a copy."

"Bloody hell," Harry whispered in awe. "I think we're starting to corrupt her, Ron,"

"Blimey, I think you're right!"

"So tell me, Hermione, if Fred and George have a secret copy of the prank, then it would be alright," Harry asked as he kept his face schooled. "Right?"

"Well... as long as no one found out," Hermione replied as she chewed on the edge of her nail. "But it's not like it matters. Remus has their copy."

"True," Harry replied. "So tell me, Hermione, what movie would you like to see at Gryffindor movie night?"

"Well if someone could figure out a way," Hermione voice trailed off in thought. "Nightmare on Elm Street."

Harry jaw dropped while Ron looked back and forth between his two friends in confusion. "Nightmare on Elm Street?" Ron asked.

"She's a slasher!" Harry exclaimed. "Our prim and proper Hermione is a slash fan!"

"Slash?"

Snuffles raises his head while the trio conversed, his sharp eyes fixed upon the twins climbing the stairs towards their dorm room.

A sudden squeal of happiness erupted from the boy's dorm room, followed by the slamming of a door.

"They're mental!" Ron mumbled to himself before turning back to Harry and Hermione. "Now who is the Freddy character again?"


	11. Shaken Not Stirred

**Title:** Shaken. Not Stirred

**Author:** Lady FoxFire

**Pairing(s):** None… so far

**Rating:** M

**Warning:** implied sexual contact, violence

**Category(s):** Angst/Drama

**Summary:** When Vernon's abuse goes too far, will Harry be able to live with the effects?

**Disclaimer: **Dumbledore walks out on stage. "Ladies and gentlemen I would like to take full fault on the delay of this fic. If Rowling, who owns this universe had filled in all the plot holes she had through the series I would never have been viewed as the evil bastard I came to be seen as. Perhaps if that had never had happened our dear author would be writing professionally and making money from her own stories. Unfortunately the child still writing fanfics and having to work for a living. Thank you and good night everyone."

**Bad Author Notes:** Yes, I know it's been a long time and this is a short chapter but I fell into the evil/bastard Dumbledore group and I found writing a 'good' Dumbledore to be harder to do after that. Now having said that I will tell you that updates will be spotty. I am trying to finish 2 other fics along with this one that have been left to hang way too long while working on my other interests. Then when you add in my 12 yr. old son and my health isn't the greatest right now (headaches) it all means that I'm slow on updating. Now having said all that I would like to thank my friend and sometime writing partner Corwalch for kicking my ass so that I finished this chapter.

* * *

"This has to be the most uncomfortable thing I've ever worn," Harry growled as he tugged at the collar of his robe.

"Stop that," Sirius said as he slapped Harry's hand away and started to fix the collar.

"I don't want to be in this outfit," Harry whined as he stood still while Sirius worked on his clothing. "Why do I have to be dressed up for this? Why couldn't I just wear my regular robes?"

"Because the press will be there and Fudge wants to make a good impression on them," Sirius said as he walked around Harry inspecting him, brushing some lint off of his shoulder, straightening out the back.

"Like I care what Fudge wants. This whole press conference is just a dog and pony show," Harry growled in disgust. "I can't believe that Dumbledore agreed to this."

Sirius let out a weary sigh. "Dumbledore doesn't exactly have a choice in the matter. A public showing is prescribed by the Le sang de Magie, it was a way for the public to see... well..."

"To see the merchandise." Harry supplied as he crossed his arms over his chest and ground his teeth.

Sirius grimaced at Harry's choice of words. "You should be happy that Dumbledore forced the issue of the robes," Sirius commented absent-mindedly.

"What do you mean he **forced** the issue?" Harry asked with dread

"Well," Sirius drew out the first word before the rest of the words hurried out, "it would be either wearing the robes you're wearing or... umm you would be in the nude."

"**What!**" exploded from Harry's lips.

Sirius gently steered Harry over to his bed and gently pushed him down on so that he was sitting on it before he plopped down next to him. "In old laws concerning Le sang de Magie, it was required that the person be dressed in such a manner that they could be easily inspected," Sirius explained.

Harry crossed his arms over his chest. "In another words they wanted to be able to inspect my assets."

"Well we are dealing with a sexually repressed group here," Sirius commented. "Luckily Dumbledore was able to press the point that inspection section of Le sang de Magie hadn't been use since the early years of the process. And then when you add in your age and fame, he was able to get Fudge to back down."

Harry snorted in distrain. "Fine but couldn't I wear a move comfortable set of robes?" Harry tugged once again at the collar. "I feel like I'm being strangled!"

Sirius stood up so that he has easier access to Harry's collar. "Hold still," Sirius said as he fixed the collar once again. "I remember you father complaining about this style of collar too."

"When was that?"

Plopping down once again on the bed, Sirius said, "It was at your naming, when I was named as your Godfather. Lily was determined to make everything perfect so James, Remus and me had to promise not to pull any pranks and to act like perfect gentlemen for the ceremony or else. And one thing I learned early on is that you never cross Lily when she used the 'or else' threat. Your mum was one scary woman at times."

"So did everything go right?"

A deep chuckle came from Sirius. "Hardly! Right before the ceremony Lily developed a case of the hiccups. Of course she blamed us for it when though we swore it wasn't us. Lily tried every hiccup cure she could think of without any luck. Finally one of the Priestess told her aside and convince Lily that this was the Gods way of telling her to stop taking everything so seriously and to enjoy life and all of it's inconsistency.

Harry chuckled. "So did everything go right after that?"

"Petty much," Sirius said with a shrug of his shoulder. "Or it did after you blessed the holy pool."

"Blessed the holy pool?"

"You peed in it."

"I peed in a holy pool," Harry said, his embarrassment was evident in his voice. "How could I pee in the pool? Didn't I have a nappy on?"

"Nope. A baby is brought to the pool naked. The Priestess then takes the baby and dips its feet into the water; traditionally that's when a baby pees into the pool but you did it before the Priestess received you. After that she hands the baby over to the Godparents who then dress and feed the baby before handing the kid back to their parents."

Harry shook his head. "I bet mum was just glad I did poop in the pool."

"Yeah she was," Sirius replied. "From what I hear the Longbottom's boy, Neville, threw up on the Priestess when he was passed to her."

"I wonder if Neville knows about that."

~*~

"If everyone would be quiet please," A Ministry nobody said from the podium as he tried to signal everyone to be quiet. "If everyone would please be quiet we will begin in 5 minutes."

"Are there a lot of people here?" Harry asked Remus softly as Snuffles sat at his feet.

Remus nodded his head, forgetting for a moment that Harry couldn't see him "Yeah there are. There are reporters from at least a dozen new agencies from around the world. There are also a number of well-to-do people who probably bribed Fudge for access to this meeting. It looks like there are representatives from most of the magical governments in the world. And it looks like someone here for the Royal Family."

"The Royal Family?" Harry said in disbelieve. "You mean **the** Royal Family of England! Why would they be here?"

Remus looked at Harry in confusion. "The Royal Family has always mixed with the wizard world ever since the time of Merlin and King Arthur. For a while wizards sat on the throne until pressure from Christians split the line so that there was the Muggle Royal line and the wizard Royal line."

"There's Royal wizards?" Harry said in confusion.

Remus sighs. "Binns really doesn't teach you anything does he."

"Not unless it's about the goblin wars," Harry replied.

"Ladies and gentlewizards," A Ministry nobody announced. "Minister Fudge."

Fudge took the podium, smiling the smile all politations seemed to have mastered. "Ladies and gentle wizards thank you for coming. We are gathered here today on this momentous occasion because we of the wizarding community are being given the oppunity to give back to one who saved us all from a dark wizard who terrorized the land. Recently this hero who defended our land and way of life was injured in an unfortunate accident, that has left him unable to properly do magic. Because of his injuries it was decided that it would be best to allow the wizard community a chance to protect our hero and help him once again become a useful member of society."

Harry leaned closer to Remus and whispered. "He's a true polittaion. He says a lot and yet says nothing."

Remus chuckled softly.

"So in order to protect this injured hero it was decided to reinstate the Le sang de Magie. As you know Le sang de Magie was used for generations in order to protect those witches and wizards who unfortunately can no longer use magic the way it was meant to be used. Le sang de Magie gave those poor souls a new purpose in life and further strengthened the bonds between all wizard kind whether they are pure blood, Muggle born or a half blood. Today marks a change in the wizard world; a new step into what I know will be a better future. Thank you all for attending."

Fudge was quickly replaced with the Ministry nobody. "Informational packages are at the door. Please remember to pick one up before leaving."

"Is that it?" Harry whispered. "Is that all there is to this dog and pony show?"

"I wish it was," Remus whispered back. "Now it's the meet and greet part of the show."

"Wonderful," Harry moaned as he crossed his arms and slumped into his chair.

"Mr. Potter," a dark haired man about Sirius' and Remus' age appeared before Harry. "Allow me to introduce myself, Bond, James Bond."

Harry turned towards the voice. "Mr. Bond," he said with a nod of his head. "Allow me to introduce my companions, Remus Lupin and my dog Snuffles."

"A pleasure," Bond replied with a nod of his head towards Remus. "Mr. Potter I am here on behalf of the Royal Family and the British government. I am to relay to you that her Mastisty is not pleased that the Wizard government decided to reinstate Le sang de Magie."

"But they're not going to do anything about it," Harry replied.

"Unfortunately, no," Bond replied. "The British government's influence in the Wizard community is rather limited. If we had known about your condition before you had returned to Hogwarts, you would have been placed in a more securtied location."

"And what of before?" Harry demanded. "I lived in that house with that man for 10 years before going to Hogwarts why wasn't anything done before?"

Bond gritted his teeth. "From what I understand some of the member of the British government were paid to look the other way while others were forced to forget but I can assure you Mr. Potter that **when** those involved are found they will **pay** for what they've done."

Harry nodded his head accepting Bond's answer.

"Mr. Bond," Remus said.

"Yes, Mr. Lupin," Bond replied.

"Would I be correct in assuming that you're not here just to pass along the Queen's displeasure over what is happening?" Remus asked.

"Unfortunately I am not. Mr. Potter I have been asked by her Majesty to approach you with the offer of help from the Royal Family. Her Majesty is willing to bid for you with the understanding that when she wins you would become a ward of the Crown. Her Majesty is hoping that you might be willing to marry Her Majesty's granddaughter Zara Anne Elizabeth Phillips or someone else of the House of Windsor in order combine the two Royal families once again."

"The two Royal families?" Harry said in confusion.

"Mr. Potter," Fudge said as he barged into the conversation without a glance at Mr. Bond. "Mr. Notts is asking to examine you so if you could come this way." Fudge grabbed hold of Harry's arm.

"To do what," Harry said as he stayed in his seat as Fudge tried to pull him out, "examine my teeth?"

"That and other things, I would expect," Fudge said in a tone that indicated he thought that Harry was someone of lesser intelligence.

"I believe that Headmaster Dumbledore, Harry's guardian is the only one who can allow someone to examine Harry," Remus stepped in between Harry and the Minister.

"Minster Fudge, I believe that Mr. Potter's current health report is included in the information package," Bond said holding up the packages that was available to everyone.

Fudge turned and looked at Bond. Barely concealing his disgust at Bond's Muggle attire, he asked, "And who are you sir?"

"Bond. James Bond," he declared.

"Bond. I don't believe I know any wizard family by that surname," Fudge said.

"That's because I am not a wizard," Bond stated in a matter of fact manner. "I'm here on behalf of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II."

Fudge's eyes widened as he shuffled in place. "I've done nothing illegal. Le sang de Magie is completely legal within the wizard community."

"Yes," Bond said with a dangerous tint to his voice. "Yes Her Majesty is fully aware of that. And she is less then pleased by it."

Fudge opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water gasping for air.

With a dangerous smile Bond said, "Now why don't you run along and give Mr. Notts a copy of Mr. Potter's health report like a good lad."

Fudge looked between Bond and Lupin before finally glancing at Harry. "Yes. Yes," Fudge said as he straightened his robes. "That's a splendid idea." And with that Fudge turned and hurried away.

"Never did care for politicians," Bond said softly.

"I have to agree with you on that," Harry added in. "He's a bit like a jackass isn't he."

Bond glanced sharply at Harry, hearing something unspoken in the young man's voice only to be met by an innocent smile.

"Mr. Bond I believe you were going to explain your comment about two Royal families before we were so rudely interrupted," Remus stated.

"Oh Mr. Potter! It's a pleasure to meet you," bubbly young woman with strawberry blond hair said as she came up behind Mr. Bond. "I've always dreamt of meeting you and thank you for all that you've done. I mean how many people can say that they're met a **real** hero before. And then after I read about your horrible accident I said to myself, Holly you can help Harry Potter. I mean I no I have absolutely, positively no chance of winning you especially go up against people like the Malfoy and the Spensers but I figured if a baby Harry Potter can win against You Know Who then I have a chance of winning Harry Potter. So I hope you don't mind."

The woman stared at Harry before with wide worshiping eyes while waiting for Harry to acknowledge her.

Harry opened his mouth. Closed it. Open. Closed. "Umm… thanks."

The woman squealed before throwing herself at Harry and hugging him. "Well I got to go. Thanks," she babbled before disappearing into the crowd.

"For some strange reason I had image that the ladies would be ethereal here," Bond said as he stared at the place he had last seen the woman. "My briefing stated that the wizard world was more like the Victorian era not today's California."

"It's rather a mix of the two," Remus explained. "You have your prim and proper ladies," he nodded to Professor McGonagall, "and then you have the rest."

"I blame inbreeding," Harry said very wisely.

Bond turned to comment when a woman's scream ripped through the air. Bond positioned himself in front of Harry; his weapon drawn as he eyes scanned the room for danger.

"**Heehaw! Heehaw!**"

"Is the Minister giving another speech," Harry said innocently just as Bond saw a donkey dressed in clothing similar to what Fudge had been wearing earlier.

"I do believe he is," Remus replied smugly. "I do believe he is."


End file.
